Donald Trump Says U.S. Ceasefire With Iran Is Over, Continues Negotiations in Oman

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that the ceasefire with Iran was "over" after less than three weeks, while directing that the United States would continue negotiations in response to Iran's request to keep talks going.

CBS News reported that Trump advisers were told by Iranian officials that they "made a mistake" in shooting at commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week and that the attacks stemmed from an "errant" sect of hardliners trying to undermine negotiations.

Al Jazeera

The talks are to take place in Oman on Saturday, with the U.S. saying it would respond using military and economic leverage if Iran continued to engage in hostile acts.

Al Jazeera reported that Trump wrote on Truth Social: "We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them, in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER!"

In the same reporting, Al Jazeera said the June 17 memorandum of understanding called for an immediate end to fighting on all fronts, the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade on Iran and re-opening the Strait of Hormuz.

Qatari mediators were described by CBS News as working to de-escalate the situation, with an Iranian official and a Qatari official confirming that mediators were in Mashad, Iran, to try to return to a truce and allow the Strait of Hormuz to reopen.

BBC reported that Trump agreed to continue discussions with Iran while stressing that the ceasefire with the Islamic Republic has ended, and it quoted Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr warning of retaliation for any attack on Iran’s infrastructure.

Al Jazeera

In Al Jazeera’s account, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman denied new negotiations had been requested with the U.S., saying only that it had accepted a visit by a Qatari delegation seeking to find a way through the impasse.

Al Jazeera also quoted Iran’s lead negotiator and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf saying, "At any moment the Americans betray the understanding, we are ready for full-scale defence and will stand firm against them and defend the rights of the Iranian people."

The BBC further reported that Egyptian and Qatari foreign ministers urged the United States and Iran to return to the negotiating table under the memorandum of understanding signed in June.

The dispute over the Strait of Hormuz remained the flashpoint in the reporting, with Al Jazeera describing the passage of commercial traffic as the trigger for the latest cycle of attacks and saying the exchange of fire was the largest threat yet to the June 17 memorandum of understanding.

“Trump agrees to continue talks with Iran, and Tehran vows to strike Israel in retaliation for any attack on its infrastructure”

BBC

Al Jazeera reported that since Tuesday the U.S. had had about 170 targets in Iran, according to U.S. Central Command, while it said Iran retaliated by targeting U.S. assets across the region.

BBC said the United States said it had targeted 90 military sites, some near the strait, while Iran said 14 people were killed in the last two days and that its Health Ministry announced 14 dead and 78 others injured across five provinces.

Al Jazeera noted that Trump did not clarify whether the talks would focus on ending the fighting or on issues meant to be addressed within 60 days of the memorandum’s signing, including the future of Iran’s nuclear programme and the unfreezing of Iranian assets.

In the same reporting, Al Jazeera said the war is politically unpopular in the U.S. and threatens to undermine Trump’s Republican Party in November’s midterm elections, while it added that Iran’s economy has also suffered throughout the war, boosting incentives to access frozen funds and have sanctions lifted.