United States President Donald Trump has said that a ceasefire between Israel and Iran is “now in effect” and tells both countries: “Please do not violate it!”
Several hours after Trump’s announcement, the Israeli government confirmed that it agrees to the ceasefire, and warns it will “respond forcefully to any violation.”
Iran earlier said it would only stop its attacks if Israel did the same
Meanwhile, Israel said four people were killed in overnight attacks from Iran; State media in Tehran reported that “a last round of missiles” was fired before the ceasefire came into effect.
Tehran also faced a barrage of intense attacks overnight, according to military sources in the region.
It came after Iran launched missiles at the US airbase in response to strikes on its nuclear sites over the weekend – Qatar said all the missiles were intercepted.
A statement by the Israeli government said it agreed to the ceasefire proposal after “achieving the objectives” of its attacks on Iran.
The statement noted that Israel removed Iran’s “dual immediate existential threat” from nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.
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It also said Israel has “inflicted severe damage on the military leadership, and destroyed dozens of central Iranian government targets”.
The statement goes on to say that Israeli forces, in the last day, have “severely struck government targets in the heart of Tehran, eliminating hundreds of Basij operatives” – a militia the Iranian government often uses to suppress protests – and “eliminating another senior nuclear scientist”.
“Israel thanks President Trump and the United States for their support in defence and their participation in eliminating the Iranian nuclear threat,” the statement adds.
(Editor: Ken Eseni)
