12-day war ends? Trump declares ceasefire between Israel and Iran but sirens continue to sound in Israel
On 23rd June (local time), President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced that Israel and Iran have agreed to a “complete and total ceasefire”. In a post on social media platform Truth Social, Trump said that the conflict would be over in 24 hours, calling it the “12-day war”.
Source: Truth Social
Congratulating everyone, Trump said, “! It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE.” Interestingly, Trump pointed out that the ceasefire would be done in phases, starting from six hours from the moment he posted on the social media platform, as Israel and Iran would have completed their in-progress missions by then.
He added, “Officially, Iran will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 12th Hour, Israel will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 24th Hour, an Official END to THE 12 DAY WAR will be saluted by the World.” He further announced that during the ceasefire, the other side will remain “peaceful and respectful”.
Congratulating both Iran and Israel on having the stamina, courage and intelligence to end the conflict, he added, “This is a War that could have gone on for years, and destroyed the entire Middle East, but it didn’t, and never will! God bless Israel, God bless Iran, God bless the Middle East, God bless the United States of America, and GOD BLESS THE WORLD!”
In a follow-up post on Truth Social, Trump claimed that both Iran and Israel approached him seeking ceasefire. He said, “Israel & Iran came to me, almost simultaneously, and said, “PEACE!” I knew the time was NOW. The World, and the Middle East, are the real WINNERS! Both Nations will see tremendous LOVE, PEACE, AND PROSPERITY in their futures. They have so much to gain, and yet, so much to lose if they stray from the road of RIGHTEOUSNESS & TRUTH. The future for Israel & Iran is UNLIMITED, & filled with great PROMISE. GOD BLESS YOU BOTH!”
Source: Truth Social
Conflicting statements by Iran
Following the announcement by the US President, initially Iran said in a statement that the agreement on ceasefire had not been reached. Iran’s Foreign Minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said in a statement that Iran has repeatedly made clear that Israel launched war on Iran, not the other way around. He added, “As of now, there is NO ‘agreement’ on any ceasefire or cessation of military operations. However, provided that the Israeli regime stops its illegal aggression against the Iranian people no later than 4 am Tehran time, we have no intention to continue our response afterwards. The final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later.”
Source: X
However, only 15 minutes after the initial post, without saying the ceasefire was to happen, he thanked the Iranian Armed Forces for responding to the attack by the “enemy” until the very last minute.
Source: X
He wrote, “The military operations of our powerful Armed Forces to punish Israel for its aggression continued until the very last minute, at 4am. Together with all Iranians, I thank our brave Armed Forces who remain ready to defend our dear country until their last drop of blood, and who responded to any attack by the enemy until the very last minute.”
Israel says it achieved ‘all objectives’ of Operation Rising Lion
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Prime Minister Netanyahu reported during a Security Cabinet meeting that Israel had achieved all the objectives of Operation Rising Lion, and much more. The double existential threat had been removed, and the IDF had achieved complete air superiority in the skies over Tehran, striking a severe blow to the military leadership and destroying dozens of Iran’s main regime targets.
Israel thanked Trump and the United States for their defensive support and for participating in the removal of the Iranian nuclear threat. “In light of having achieved the objectives of the operation, and in full coordination with President Trump, Israel agrees to the President’s proposal for a bilateral ceasefire,” the ministry added.
Israel accuses Iran of violating ceasefire
Hours after Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, Israel accused Iran of violating the agreement. Defence Minister of Israel, Israel Katz, reportedly instructed the IDF to respond forcefully to Iran’s “violation of the ceasefire with intense strikes on regime targets in the heart of Tehran”.
According to a post by Israel War Room, Iran fired a missile directed at Israel following Trump’s ceasefire announcement. Katz, in coordination with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, instructed the IDF to continue intense operations in Tehran. “These strikes are aimed at regime targets and terror infrastructure in the capital, building on the operations carried out yesterday,” Katz added.
Sirens sounding despite announcement of ceasefire
Despite the announcement of ceasefire and Israel agreeing to it, Iran has reportedly continued to fire missiles towards Israel. In a post on X, IDF reported sirens sounded at several locations in Israel due to missiles fired by Iran.
Israel-Iran conflict
The conflict between Israel and Iran began on 13th June, when Israel launched a massive airstrike on Iranian nuclear and military establishments, codenamed “Operation Rising Lion”. In retaliation, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a large-scale drone and missile campaign against Israel, codenamed “Operation True Promise 3”.
The US also entered the conflict and, on 22nd June, it initiated military strikes on three key Iranian nuclear facilities, codenamed “Operation Midnight Hammer”. Iran retaliated by launching multiple missiles at US military installations in Iraq and Qatar, including the largest US military base in the Middle East, Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
Israel and the US argued that Iran was on the path to develop nuclear bombs and it was essential to cripple its nuclear programme to ensure that the Islamic nation does not get the nuclear arsenal. However, Iran has repeatedly claimed that its nuclear program is only for peace, not for developing nuclear warheads.
News