US And Iran Reach Preliminary Deal To Extend Ceasefire For 60 Days

The United States and Iran reached a preliminary memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire between the two countries for 60 days and start negotiations for permanently ending the war, according to officials cited by Al Jazeera.

“The United States and Iran have reached a preliminary memorandum of understanding (MOU) to extend the ceasefire between the two countries for 60 days and start negotiations for permanently ending the war, according to officials”

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera reported that US sources said the framework still needs President Donald Trump’s final approval, and that the White House confirmed the report to Al Jazeera after Axios first reported the preliminary deal.

Al Jazeera

The Al Jazeera account said the tentative deal would be a major breakthrough after weeks of stalled diplomacy, but that details remained obscure and it was unclear whether the 60-day extension represented a deadline for negotiations.

Al Jazeera also said the two sides traded limited attacks earlier on Thursday, and that the ongoing truce was already open-ended.

In the same Al Jazeera report, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent threatened Oman with sanctions if it facilitates fees on ships going through the Strait of Hormuz, while later telling reporters, "It’s always a mistake to get out ahead of the president, so it is all going to be the president’s decision."

While US and Iranian diplomacy stalled over the terms of a wider end to the war, Newsweek said Israel killed Mohammed Odeh, the recently installed head of Hamas' armed wing, in an airstrike on northern Gaza as Israeli forces intensified operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon despite ceasefire agreements meant to halt both conflicts.

Newsweek quoted Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz saying Odeh was killed in a strike the previous day and that he congratulated the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel's internal security agency for what he described as "the brilliant execution."

AP News

Hamas confirmed the death of Odeh in the franceinfo live update, where the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said their "chief of staff," Mohammed Odeh, was killed the day before in an Israeli strike.

The franceinfo update also said the Israeli operation that caused his death led to the deaths of his wife and children, and caused a number of other civilian deaths and injuries, according to Hamas.

In the same Newsweek account, Israel's retaliatory war on Hamas in Gaza was described as having killed more than 72,800 people, according to Hamas-run health authorities, even as a ceasefire that began in October 2025 stopped two years of full-scale war.

As the US and Iran discussed a 60-day extension, franceinfo reported that Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the Israeli army to disregard the terms of the ceasefire that went into effect in October and to take control of 70% of the Gaza Strip.

franceinfo quoted Netanyahu saying, "Right now, we have Hamas on the ropes. We are now in control of 60% of the Gaza Strip’s territory," and added that his directive was to move to 70.

El País said Israel further rendered the ceasefires in Lebanon and Gaza meaningless, describing Netanyahu intensifying bombardments, forced population movements, and assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders amid a potential deal between the US and Iran.

El País reported that in the current week alone Israel declared a 'combat zone' and ordered the complete evacuation of southern Lebanon, and that in Gaza it resumed targeted killings of Hamas' leadership, including killing Mohammed Odeh, his wife and two of his children, 11 days after killing Izz al-Din al-Haddad.

El País also said the result was "more than 900 dead in Gaza since the ceasefire signed in October 2025" and "more than 600 in Lebanon since last April's ceasefire," framing the stakes as a deadlock over disarmament and the prospect of a new Israeli offensive looms.