(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said on social media Monday evening that Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire, signaling a possible end to nearly two weeks of escalating air assaults by the two countries.
The agreement described by Trump involved two 12-hour ceasefire periods, starting at about 12 a.m. EDT starting with Iran. That would come “when Israel and Iran have wound down and completed their in progress, final missions,” Trump said in the Truth Social post.
Israel would then follow with a second 12-hour ceasefire, Trump said.
After 24 hours, the war would be officially declared ended, according to Trump.
“On the assumption that everything works as it should, which it will, I would like to congratulate both Countries, Israel and Iran, on having the Stamina, Courage, and Intelligence to end, what should be called, ‘THE 12 DAY WAR,'” Trump wrote in the post.
In the immediate aftermath of Trump’s announcement, neither Israeli nor Iranian officials publicly commented on the proposal.
In the final hours before the ceasefire was set to go into effect, under the terms described by Trump, Israel said Iran had launched a barrage of missiles, killing at least three people.
Earlier, in a post on social media, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi had denied there was a ceasefire agreement. However, he said if Israel halted its strikes by 4 a.m. Tehran time (8:30 p.m. EDT) “we have no intention to continue our response afterwards.”
Araghchi said a final decision “on the cessation of our military operations” would be made later and he thanked Iranian armed forces who he said “responded to any attack by the enemy until the very last minute.”
Trump’s surprise ceasefire announcement came two days after the U.S. joined Israel’s war, launching strikes on three Iranian nuclear targets.
The war began June 12 when Israel launched a series of strikes against Iran that included dozens of military targets, including the country’s nuclear program. Defending what it called a “preemptive” strike, Israel cited intelligence that it said indicated Iran had “significantly advanced” toward obtaining a nuclear weapon — claims Iran denied.
Earlier Monday, Iran fired missiles targeting Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar — the largest U.S. military base in the region — raising concerns about potential escalation after the U.S.. However, a U.S. official told ABC News the U.S. intercepted the missiles with assistance from Qatar and Trump, who called the response “very weak,” struck a de-escalatory tone on social media. One source later called Iran’s move a “failed retaliation.”
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