- The final decision on military operations will be made later, says Araghchi.
- Says Iran does not respond further if Israel stops aggression.
- “Israel launched war against Iran, not the other way around,” he adds.
Tehran: Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said early on Tuesday that there was no “agreement” on a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.
But he added that if Israel stopped his “illegal aggression” against the Iranian people by noon. 04.00 TEHRAN TIME (0030 GMT) Tuesday, Iran did not intend to continue his answer afterwards.
“The final decision to cease our military operations will be taken later,” Araghchi added in a post on X.
“The military operations from our powerful armed forces to punish Israel for its aggression continued until the last moment, at 4am,” he added.
His remarks came hours after US President Donald Trump announced that Iran and Israel had accepted a staggered ceasefire that would lead to an “official ending” to their conflict as strikes continued to hammer Tehran overnight.
“It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a complete and total ceasefire,” Trump wrote on his truth’s social platform.
Trump said the ceasefire would be a phase 24-hour process that begins around 0400 GMT on Tuesday, with Iran unilaterally stopping all operations. Israel would follow after 12 hours later, the president said.
“On the 24th hour, an official ending to the 12-day war will be greeted by the world,” he said, adding that both sides had agreed to remain “peaceful and respectful” in every phase of the process.
Explosions nevertheless continued to rock Tehran overnight with explosions in the north and the center of the Iranian capital described by AFP journalists as some of the strongest since the conflict broke out.
Any cessation of hostilities would come as a huge relief to world leaders who are hectic over an escalation in violence ignited to a wider combustion.
Opponents had swapped missile fire since Israel performed surprise “Preventive” strikes against Iran on June 13, targeting nuclear and military places and causing Trump to warn of a possible “massive” regional conflict.
Strikes on the US base
The US leaders’ ceasefire – Message came hours after Iran launched missiles on the largest US military facility in the Middle East – Al Udid Air Base in Qatar – in one step, Trump withdrew as “very weak.”
Trump, who called for a shell, said Tehran had given prior notice of the barrier. No one had been injured in the attack, Trump said.
Iran’s National Security Council confirmed to have targeted the base “In response to the American aggressive and insolent action against Iran’s nuclear sites and facilities.”
But it added that the number of missiles launched “was the same as the number of bombs used by the United States” – a signal that it had calibrated its answer to being directly proportional rather than escalating.
“This was calibrated and telegraphed in a way that would not result in any US loss, so there is an off ramp for both sides,” Ali Vaez, a senior adviser at International Crisis Group, told AFP.
The offensive came after the United States joined its Ally Israeli military campaign against Iran, attacking an underground uranium enrichment center with massive bunker -busting bombs and hit two other nuclear facilities overnight on Saturday to Sunday.
As the international concern mounted on the Israeli campaign and the United States strikes could ignite in a wider conflict, French President Emmanuel Macron insisted that “the chaos spiral should end” while China warned of the potential economic fallout.
‘Obviously Aggression’
Iran said its assault in Qatar was not targeted at the Middle Eastern neighbor, but the government in Doha accused Tehran of “obvious aggression” and claimed it was the right to a “proportional” response.
Iran’s state media cited Revolutionary Guard Corps, which announced that six missiles had hit Al Udeid, which had been evacuated in advance, according to Qataris.
Bredside consisted of “short range and medium -sized ballistic missiles,” said a US defense employee.
AFP journalists heard blasts in Central Doha and in Lusail, north of the capital, Monday night and then projectiles move across the night sky.
Iranians gathered in central Tehran to celebrate, showed images on state -TV, with some waving flags from the Islamic Republic and sang “Death to America.”
Qatar previously announced the temporary closure of his airspace in the light of “Developments in the Region”, while the US embassy and other foreign missions warned their citizens to protect themselves in place.
Israeli strikes over Iran have killed more than 400 people, Iran’s Ministry of Health said. Twenty -four people have died in Iran’s attack on Israel, according to official figures.
After a day of tit-for-tat missiles between Israel and Iran, the Israeli army around midnight called residents of a part of central Tehran to evacuate and said it “targeted the Iranian regime’s military infrastructure.”
– With additional input from AFP.
