Trump suspends US attacks, Tehran agrees to 2-week ceasefire
The United States and Iran have agreed to a two-week ceasefire, with talks to finalise a peace deal set to begin in Pakistan’s Islamabad on Friday.
The truce, announced by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, will see Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime corridor through which a fifth of the world’s oil supply passes.
Iran’s foreign minister said safe passage through the key waterway will be possible for a period of two weeks through coordination with Iran’s armed forces.
Trump’s statement came after Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asked the US president to extend his deadline for a deal, and for Iran to fully open the Strait of Hormuz.
Celebrations have been reported in the Iranian capital, Tehran, following the news of a two-week ceasefire to allow for peace talks between the US and Iran, Al Jazeera reported.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel supports Trump’s two-week pause in attacks on Iran, but the “ceasefire does not include Lebanon”.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier said the deal between Iran, the US, and their allies included “Lebanon and elsewhere” and is effective immediately.
The United States had won a “total and complete victory” after agreeing to a two-week ceasefire deal with Iran, US President Donald Trump said in an interview with the AFP news agency.
“Total and complete victory. 100 percent. No question about it,” Trump said in a brief telephone interview shortly after announcing the deal.
He also said that Iran’s stores of uranium would be “perfectly taken care of” under the ceasefire deal, while noting that China had helped bring Iran to negotiations with the US.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said it will observe a two-week ceasefire amid the cessation of fighting between Iran and the US.
UN chief Antonio Guterres and Australia’s Prime Minister Albanese were among the world leaders who welcomed the ceasefire announcement.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the announcement and called on all parties to abide by the terms of the ceasefire “in order to pave the way toward a lasting and comprehensive peace in the region”, according to his spokesperson.
Guterres underscored “that an end to hostilities is urgently needed to protect civilian lives and alleviate human suffering”, and thanked Pakistan and other nations involved in facilitating the truce.
US Democratic lawmakers have continued to call for Trump’s impeachment after the truce announcement, citing the president’s “genocidal” and “unhinged” rhetoric towards Iran.
