SOURCE :- THE AGE NEWS
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council says it has accepted a two-week ceasefire in the war between the US-Israel and Iran, and will reopen the Strait of Hormuz for the duration of the pause.
The statement comes after US President Donald Trump said he would suspend his plans to bomb Iran for another two weeks, sharing a post on Truth Social that he had received a 10-point proposal from Iran and was willing to negotiate.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has released a statement on X, saying Iran has agreed to the US’s terms and stating: “If attacks against Iran are halted, our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defensive operations.”
The statement also said Iran would allow safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz in co-ordination with Iranian Armed Forces “for a period of two weeks”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later said the ceasefire would not affect Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah and Lebanon.
With AP
Bahrain sounded its missile alert sirens Wednesday morning, hours after the US and Iran say they reached a two-week ceasefire in the war for negotiations. Bahrain’s Interior Ministry announced the warning.
It wasn’t immediately clear from the ceasefire when it would begin.
Iran has fired missiles on the Gulf Arab states and Israel after the announcement.
AP
US President Donald Trump claimed the US war on Iran as a ‘total and complete victory’ after facilitating a two-week ceasefire deal.
“Total and complete victory. 100 per cent. No question about it,” he told news agency AFP.
Trump said, “You’re going to have to see,” when asked if he would follow through on threats to destroy Iran’s infrastructure if the Islamic Republic broke the terms of the deal.
In a Truth Social post Trump said today was: “A big day for World Peace.”
“Iran wants it to happen, they’ve had enough! Likewise, so has everyone else! The United States of America will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz.
“There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made.”
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has welcomed the two-week US-Iran ceasefire as a proposal that “augurs well for the restoration of peace and stability” around the world.
“It is earnestly hoped that the negotiation process will be conducted in good faith, with a firm resolve to seeking lasting resolution to the issues currently facing the region,” Ibrahim said in a statement.
“Peace talks cannot succeed if the proceedings are cloaked in deception and double-dealing.”
The prime minister added that Iran’s 10-point plan for peace should also end suffering in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen, and “ensure the end of the genocide and dispossession of the people of Palestine, not least in Gaza”.
“Let this be a turning point towards lasting peace,” he said. “The world cannot afford for it to be anything less.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be allowed under Iranian military management.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether that meant Iran would completely loosen its chokehold on the waterway.
The plan allows for Iran and Oman to charge fees on ships transiting through the strait, according to a regional official who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity. The official said Iran would use the money it raised for reconstruction.
In addition to control of the strait, Iran’s demands for ending the war include withdrawal of US forces from the region, the lifting of sanctions and the release of its frozen assets.
AP
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has welcomed the two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
A spokesman for Guterres said: “He [Guterres] calls on all the parties to the current conflict in the Middle East to comply with their obligations under international law and to abide by the terms of the ceasefire in order to pave the way toward a lasting and comprehensive peace in the region.
“The secretary-general underscores that an end to hostilities is urgently needed to protect civilian lives and alleviate human suffering.”
The humanitarian crisis in Lebanon appears set to continue, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the US-Iran ceasefire did not include Israel’s attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
More than 1500 people have been killed in Lebanon, and more than 1 million have been displaced, the Associated Press has reported. News that Israel will not end its strikes on Hezbollah threatens to worsen the humanitarian suffering.
Israel is seeking to defeat Hezbollah after decades of fighting, believing that the war on Iran may weaken the Islamic Republic’s ability to support its proxies.
The White House has declared victory in the war against Iran, heralding the end of Operation Epic Fury even though proper negotiations are yet to begin.
“This is a victory for the United States that President Trump and our incredible military made happen,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement a short time ago.
“From the very beginning of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump estimated this would be a four-to-six week operation. Thanks to the unbelievable capabilities of our warriors, we have achieved and exceeded our core military objectives in 38 days.”
Leavitt said the military campaign created maximum leverage, and negotiations had now led to “an opening for a diplomatic solution and long-term peace”.
“Additionally, President Trump got the Strait of Hormuz reopened,” she said. “Never underestimate President Trump’s ability to successfully advance America’s interests and broker peace.”
Earlier, Trump said the ceasefire was dependent on Iran reopening the strait. Iran has said its armed forces would allow ships through the strait for two weeks during the ceasefire, as long as it was not attacked.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country supported US President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend attacks against Iran for two weeks but said the ceasefire did not include Lebanon, Israeli media reported on Wednesday.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier said the US and its allies had agreed to an immediate ceasefire “everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere”, which appears at odds with Netanyahu’s most recent comments.
with Reuters
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has dodged questions on whether Donald Trump’s actions in Iran would have amounted to war crimes, had the ceasefire not occurred and Trump made good on his threat that a “civilisation will die”.
Speaking in Melbourne, Taylor said: “We’ve got to a ceasefire, and that is what we welcome”.
Taylor was also asked about the prime minister calling Trump’s comments inappropriate.
“Oh, look, they’re not the words I would use. You know that, but, but the outcome is what I want to see,” he said.
China’s summary of the phone call yesterday between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has provided a slightly different account of the conversation.
A readout published by Chinese state media makes no specific mention of the pair discussing fuel or energy security, which Albanese highlighted in a statement addressing the phone call posted to social media last night.
Instead, the Chinese side said Li pledged that China’s market would remain open to the world and that it would work with Australia to upgrade ties and expand trade during a “complex and volatile international situation”.
Last month, Beijing restricted fuel exports to protect its domestic market, though it did not officially announce this, and the statement gives no clear indication of whether this has changed. Australia sources a third of its jet fuel from China.
It is not uncommon for China to release readouts of conversation with foreign leaders that differ in substance from the other party’s, with countries choosing to emphasise different elements of conversations to their audiences.
