WASHINGTON, JUN 24 : President Donald Trump on Monday declared the \u201c12 day war\u201d between Israel and Iran was set to end in a ceasefire, holding the announcement out as validation for his strategic gamble of ordering a devastating U.S. airstrike over the weekend on three Iranian nuclear sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE,\u201d Trump posted on social media. There was no immediate word from either country on the ceasefire, and terms of the announced deal were unclear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The White House reposted Trump\u2019s announcement with a photo of the president holding a red hat that said \u201cTrump was right about everything\u201d in all capital letters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A ceasefire would be welcome news for the region and the world. But the situation in the Middle East remains far from stable and it was impossible to predict how longer-term dynamics might be affected. The Israeli and U.S. bombing of Iran certainly has slowed Iran\u2019s ability to enrich nuclear material but it might also have steeled Tehran\u2019s resolve to breakout toward a bomb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\u2019s announcement comes just before he leaves Tuesday for a NATO summit in the Netherlands, where he will likely make the case that his mix of aggression and diplomacy has succeeded. Never shy to suggest he deserves the Nobel Peace Price, Trump went so far as to give the conflict between Israel and Iran the name of the \u201c12 day war,\u201d a title that seemed to reference the 1967 \u201cSix Day War\u201d in which Israel fought a group of Arab countries including Egypt, Jordan and Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Trump described it, the ceasefire would start with Iran and then be joined by Israel 12 hours later, with the president writing that the respective sides would \u201cremain PEACEFUL and RESPECTFUL.\u201d The phased-in ceasefire was set to begin at roughly midnight Washington time and culminate within 24 hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is a War that could have gone on for years, and destroyed the entire Middle East, but it didn\u2019t, and never will!\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The exact terms of the ceasefire other than the timeline provided by the Trump remained to be seen. On Sunday, the Trump administration had insisted that Iran abandon its program to enrich uranium for possible use in nuclear weapons as a condition of any lasting peace. While the bombings of the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan facilities were a powerful show of force, it remained uncertain just how much nuclear material Iran still possessed and what its ambitions would be going forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vice President JD Vance said in a TV interview just as the ceasefire was announced that the world would look back at the war between Israel and Iran — and the U.S. bombing of Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities — as \u201can important reset moment for the entire region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Appearing on Fox News Channel\u2019s \u201cSpecial Report,\u201d the vice president said the Trump administration hoped that the Iranians had learned an important lesson: If they want to build a nuclear weapon in the future, he said, \u201cthey\u2019re going to have to deal with a very, very powerful American military again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on the social media site X an Associated Press headline of the news and wrote that Trump \u201chas accomplished what no other president in history could ever imagine \u2014 the obliteration of the Iranian Regime\u2019s nuclear program, and an unprecedented ceasefire between Israel and Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ceasefire announcement came after Iran attempted to retaliate for the U.S. assault with a Monday missile strike aimed at a major U.S. military installation in the Gulf nation of Qatar. Trump separately thanked Iran on social media for giving the U.S. and allies \u201cearly notice\u201d of the retaliation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The president expressed hope that Tehran \u2014 with its reprisal for the U.S. bombardment of three key Iranian nuclear facilities \u2014 had \u201cgotten it all out of their \u2018system\u2019\u201d and that the moment would lead to a de-escalation in the Israel-Iran war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI am pleased to report that NO Americans were harmed, and hardly any damage was done,\u201d Trump said on social media. \u201cI want to thank Iran for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured. Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Iranian attack on U.S. forces at Qatar\u2019s Al Udeid Air Base marked Tehran\u2019s first act of direct retaliation against the U.S. since Trump ordered strikes on Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leon Panetta, who served as CIA director and defense secretary under former President Barack Obama, said Iran\u2019s restrained response suggests that \u201ctheir ability to respond has probably been damaged pretty badly.\u201d He also said it\u2019s a potential signal \u201cthey\u2019re not interested in escalating the war, either with Israel or the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump said Iran launched 14 missiles at the base, a sprawling facility that hosts the forward headquarters of the U.S. military\u2019s Central Command and was a major staging ground during the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The base houses some 8,000 U.S. troops, down from about 10,000 at the height of those wars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The president said 13 of the Iranian missiles \u201cwere knocked down\u201d by U.S. air defense systems while one was \u201c\u2018set free\u2019 because it was headed in a nonthreatening direction.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hours before Iran launched its attack on Monday, the U.S. Embassy in Qatar issued an alert on its website urging American citizens in the energy-rich nation to \u201cshelter in place until further notice.\u201d The Qatari government issued an extraordinary order to shut down its busy airspace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The attack came as global markets were trying to ascertain what lays ahead after the U.S. struck key Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend with a barrage of 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs and Tomahawk missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The financial markets appeared to respond to the tensions with a relative measure of calm, given the possibility that Iran could try to block oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. But oil prices that had been elevated when the war started between Israel and Iran fell roughly 5% on Monday to $65 a barrel, quickly appearing to erase the risk that the war could cause energy prices and overall inflation to spike worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump earlier Monday called on the U.S. and allied oil-producing nations to pump more oil and \u201cKEEP OIL PRICES DOWN.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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