Netanyahu orders ‘intense strikes’ on Tehran as both sides trade blame for breaking truce that lasted less than four hours
Donald Trump’s much-vaunted ceasefire between Israel and Iran lies in tatters this morning after both sides accused each other of violating the agreement within hours of it coming into effect.
The US President, who declared the ceasefire marked a new chapter of “world peace” just last night, is reportedly furious as the warring nations trade fresh missile strikes and threats.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered “intense strikes against regime targets in the heart of Tehran” after claiming Iran fired two ballistic missiles at Israel this morning — a claim Tehran vehemently denies.
‘PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!’
In an increasingly desperate plea on Truth Social, Trump had begged both sides: “THE CEASEFIRE IS NOW IN EFFECT. PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!”
But his appeals fell on deaf ears as the fragile truce — which he’d dubbed the end of “THE 12 DAY WAR” — collapsed in spectacular fashion.
The ceasefire, which Trump announced with great fanfare on Monday evening, was supposed to be phased in over 24 hours, with Iran stopping attacks first, followed by Israel 12 hours later.
Netanyahu agrees — then attacks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office had confirmed early Tuesday that Israel agreed to the ceasefire, thanking Trump and the US for “their support in defense and their participation in eliminating the Iranian nuclear threat.
But within hours, Israel’s military claimed it had intercepted two missiles fired from Iran at 10:30 a.m. local time — just over three hours after the ceasefire supposedly took effect.
Defence Minister Katz immediately declared: “In light of the severe violation of the ceasefire carried out by the Iranian regime, we will respond with force.
He instructed the Israeli military to “continue high-intensity operations targeting regime assets and terror infrastructure in Tehran.
Iran: ‘We didn’t fire anything!’
Iran has furiously denied launching any missiles, with the General Staff of Iran’s armed forces issuing a statement carried by state-aligned Tasnim news agency rejecting the Israeli claims.
Tehran accused Israel of continuing attacks for an hour and a half beyond the ceasefire deadline, saying the Jewish state was fabricating violations to justify more strikes.
Iranian state media had earlier announced they’d fired their “last round of missiles” just before the midnight ceasefire deadline as agreed.
Death toll mounts
The collapse of the ceasefire comes after a bloody 24 hours that saw:
- Four people killed in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba by Iranian missiles
- Nine people, including a nuclear scientist, killed in Iranian strikes on residential buildings
- At least 400 dead in Iran and 3,000 injured since the conflict began, according to Iranian health officials
- 28 Israelis killed by Iranian missile strikes
Trump’s diplomatic disaster
The spectacular failure of Trump’s ceasefire represents a major diplomatic embarrassment for the President, who had boasted about his dealmaking prowess.
A senior White House official revealed Trump had called Netanyahu and “bluntly told him, ‘No more war'” — apparently to no avail.
The phased ceasefire was Trump’s idea to address Israeli concerns that Iran wouldn’t honour the deal, but it appears those fears were well-founded.
‘Tehran will burn’
The rhetoric from both sides suggests the conflict is far from over, despite Trump’s attempts at peacemaking.
Israeli lawmakers are calling for fierce retaliation, with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowing “Tehran will tremble.”
Military officials on both sides are warning their forces stand ready for escalation, with Iran’s top security body promising to “respond decisively to any Israeli violations.
World holds its breath
Global markets, which had initially rallied on news of the ceasefire, are now wobbling as investors realize the Middle East crisis is far from resolved.
Oil prices, which had tumbled by almost 18% on ceasefire hopes, are expected to surge again as the world’s most volatile region descends back into chaos.
Trump, who had proclaimed it would be “a wonderful day for the world,” now faces the harsh reality that his first major foreign policy initiative has crashed and burned within hours.
As dawn breaks over the Middle East, one thing is clear: Trump’s promise that Israel and Iran would “never be shooting at each other again” appears to be yet another broken pledge from the self-proclaimed master dealmaker.
