WASHINGTON, USA — United States President Donald Trump has announced that Iran and Israel have agreed to a “total and complete” ceasefire, signalling a potential end to nearly two weeks of open hostilities between the regional rivals.
In a statement posted on Truth Social, the former president declared that the ceasefire would take effect on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, and would mark the formal conclusion of what he referred to as the “12-Day War”.
“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,” Mr Trump wrote.
“During each ceasefire, the other side will remain peaceful and respectful. On the assumption that everything works as it should, which it will, I would like to congratulate both countries, Israel and Iran, on having the stamina, courage, and intelligence to end what should be called ‘The 12-Day War’.
“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.”
According to Trump, both governments approached him “almost simultaneously” in pursuit of a truce.
Iranian officials, however, offered a starkly different account.
The state-run IRINN television channel claimed that Trump had “begged” for the ceasefire.
In a statement posted to social media platform X, Iran’s foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi signalled that Tehran was willing to halt hostilities — but only under strict conditions.
“However, provided that the Israeli regime stops its illegal aggression against the Iranian people no later than 4am Tehran time, we have no intention to continue our response afterwards,” he said.
“The final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later.”
Araghchi further stated that Iran had “no intention” of prolonging the conflict, provided that Israel ended its military actions.
The ceasefire deal arrives just hours after Trump had publicly hinted at possible regime change in Iran, and days after the United States conducted air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Those attacks prompted a swift response from Tehran, which launched missile strikes on American military installations in Qatar and Iraq.
Though the ceasefire has been announced, uncertainty remains over its durability, with Iranian officials making clear that their compliance hinges on Israel’s immediate behaviour on the ground.
