The United States and Iran have agreed to halt recent hostilities in the Gulf and resume negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz, a US official confirmed on Sunday, offering a potential lifeline to an interim peace deal that had been under severe strain from days of retaliatory strikes.
Key Details of the Agreement
According to a US official, technical talks are scheduled to continue on all areas of the memorandum of understanding (MOU). Both sides will stand down for now, allowing vessels to move freely. Axios, which first reported the cessation of hostilities citing a senior US official, stated that talks would resume on Tuesday in Qatar.
The development follows several days of escalating strikes and counterstrikes after an Iranian projectile struck a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday. Both Washington and Tehran have accused each other of violating the interim ceasefire agreed upon on June 17, which was intended to reopen the strategic waterway.
Recent Escalations and Threats
Early on Sunday, Iran launched missiles and drones at US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain. This came shortly after US President Donald Trump threatened that the Islamic Republic would cease to exist if it did not honor the agreement to end the war. Trump posted on social media, warning that the US might be forced to militarily complete the job it started, adding, "If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!"
Meanwhile, Israel claimed on Sunday it had struck Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon again, destroying underground infrastructure in a southern Lebanese village. This followed a strike on Saturday, close to its latest ceasefire deal with Lebanon on Friday. Iran has stated that the fighting in Lebanon must end for the wider agreement to hold.
Military Responses and Casualties
Kuwait's army reported that its air defenses were responding to missile and drone attacks, while Bahrain confirmed sirens had sounded. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced in a statement that its navy and air forces had launched operations targeting US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain. The IRGC claimed US strikes had violated the ceasefire and warned of a complete halt to all diplomatic processes, with its Navy command stating that American bases in the region would "experience hell in the coming days."
A US official confirmed that Iran had targeted US facilities but reported no US casualties or major damage to sites in the Middle East, though the situation was still unfolding. Hours later, alarms sounded a second time in Bahrain, where authorities said an Iranian attack damaged a residential building in Muharraq province with no casualties. Bahrain urged the UN Security Council to hold an urgent session to hold Iran accountable.
The Kuwaiti army intercepted two ballistic missiles with no damage or casualties. Separately, Qatar said one of its nationals had died from shrapnel injuries aboard a vessel that had gone missing on Saturday, with a second person injured. The interior ministry attributed the incident to "military operations in the area" without specifying a location or assigning blame.
Background of the Conflict
The 14-point interim peace accord, mediated by Vice President JD Vance and Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, was meant to halt the fighting that began on February 28 and reopen the Strait of Hormuz while talks proceeded on issues such as Iran's nuclear program. A round of talks was held in Switzerland a week ago, and Washington waived sanctions on Tehran, but violence resumed and intensified shortly after.
