Iran and US agree to conditional two-week ceasefire and opening of Hormuz strait

A demonstrator holds a placard in front of the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, on April 7, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Rui)

US President Donald Trump says he agrees to a proposed two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran if shipping traffic is allowed to move through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Tehran will agree to the end fighting "if attacks against Iran are halted" Israel says it supports Trump's decision to suspend strikes on Iran, but the two-week ceasefire "does not include Lebanon."

The US president had set a deadline of 20:00 EDT (01:00 BST) for a deal, or else "a whole civilisation will die" Pakistan, which has been acting as a mediator, called on Trump to extend his deadline for two weeks and has invited both sides for talks in Islamabad on Friday.

Israel has just issued an official statement on the ceasefire with Iran.

Here it is in full: Israel supports President Trump's decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks subject to Iran immediately opening the straits and stopping all attacks on the US, Israel, and countries in the region. Israel also supports the US effort to ensure that Iran no longer poses a nuclear, missile, and terror threat to America, Israel, Iran's Arab neighbors, and the world.

The United States has told Israel that it is committed to achieving these goals, shares by the US, Israel and Israel's regional allies, in the upcoming negotiations.

A deficit in trust between the US and Iran will make these negotiations very difficult, BBC Persian's correspondent in Washington writes Oil prices have fallen sharply since the announcement of the ceasefire, now trading well under $100 a barrel.

Oil prices have fallen sharply since President Trump's ceasefire announcement, now trading well under $100 a barrel.

Traders had been watching this moment "extremely closely" for a "concrete commitment" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Ye Lin from research firm Rystad Energy told the BBC.

She said much of the recent oil price surge, driven by risks to Gulf shipping, "collapsed almost instantly" after the announcement.

"Every headline over the next 48 hours about whether the first tanker has safely transited the strait will move prices," Ye added.

But it will take time for drivers to feel the relief at the pump.

Not all countries adjust petrol prices daily, Ye noted, so how quickly oil prices fall will largely depend on how much Gulf oil supply is released as shipping resumes.

Trump says there is no question the US had won a "total and complete victory" after agreeing a two-week ceasefire deal with Iran.

In an interview with Agence France Presse after his announcement, he said that Iran's enriched uranium would be "perfectly taken care of" under the deal.

"Or I wouldn't have settled," Trump said, without giving any specifics about what would happen to the uranium.

When asked if he would go back to his original threats to destroy to Iran's civilian power plants and bridges if the deal fell apart all he would say was: "You're going to have to see."

Trump, who is due to travel to China next month to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, said: "I hear yes" when asked if Beijing was involved in getting its key ally Tehran to negotiate on a truce.

The White House has claimed victory after the ceasefire announcement with Iran, even as Israel has not yet made a formal response.

"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 social media post, adding that he "got the Strait of Hormuz reopened".

Leavitt notes that the president said from the start that "Operation Epic Fury" would be a four to six week operation, adding that the US "achieved and exceeded our core military objectives in 38 days".

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are expected to speak Wednesday morning, Leavitt said.

"The success of our military created maximum leverage, allowing President Trump and the team to engage in tough negotiations that have now created an opening for a diplomatic solution and long-term peace," she wrote.

Mixed reactions in Iran after long night

It's been a long night for Iranians. Many people were anticipating heavy US bombardment of power plants, roads and bridges, as Donald Trump had threatened. They were all waiting for the deadline, which was about 03:00 in Tehran.

The ceasefire announcement came around 01:00 in Tehran, but many people were still awake waiting for the attacks. There have been mixed reactions. In the past few days people were buying groceries, food and candles and storing water because they were afraid that there would be no electricity.

Now they have now some sort of relief that power plants are not going to be attacked. At the same time, many of the people who were against the regime believe that this war, amid all of its horror and its damages, would result in a regime change.

That hasn't happened. Now they are going to be dealing with a regime who has been injured in this war, and the economy has collapsed. The regime is more angry, and they have to face it again.