A ceasefire agreement brokered by former US President Donald Trump between Israel and Iran unravelled just hours after taking effect on Tuesday, with both nations accusing each other of breaching the deal and Israel vowing a “forceful” response targeting Tehran.
The ceasefire, announced by Trump late Monday, was scheduled to begin at 8 am local time (04:30 GMT) on Tuesday following a sharp escalation in hostilities. The truce followed Iran’s missile strike on a US military base in Qatar — a retaliatory move after American airstrikes reportedly hit Iranian nuclear facilities at Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz the previous day. Iran had notified Washington before the attack, and no casualties were reported.
But the fragile calm was short-lived. Israel’s military reported incoming missiles from Iran early Tuesday morning. Defence Minister Israel Katz claimed the barrage constituted a clear violation of the ceasefire and vowed to respond “forcefully and directly on Tehran”. He ordered high-intensity strikes, though details remained undisclosed.
Iran, meanwhile, denied any breach. State television reported that Israel had continued its military activity until 9 am — half an hour after the ceasefire was to take effect. Tehran labelled Israel’s accusations as “provocative and false”.
US President Trump, speaking en route to the NATO summit in The Hague, expressed frustration with both sides. “I’m not happy with either,” he told reporters, before stating he was “really unhappy” with Israel’s conduct. Trump also claimed Iran’s nuclear capabilities had been “eliminated” and would “never be rebuilt” — a statement yet to be independently verified.
The United Nations has begun evacuating some international staff and dependants from Iran due to rising security concerns. “This is a temporary precaution,” said UN spokesperson Alessandra Vellucci in Geneva.
Russia, an Iranian ally, condemned both US and Israeli airstrikes but offered little concrete support. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted Moscow’s position was “clear”, though Iranian officials voiced disappointment at the lack of tangible Russian backing.
The mutual recriminations signal a deepening of tensions that threaten to engulf the wider region. International calls for restraint have so far failed to gain traction.
