DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) 鈥 U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a 鈥渃omplete and total ceasefire" soon after Iran launched a limited missile attack Monday on a U.S. military base in Qatar, retaliating for the American bombing of its nuclear sites. But the status of a possible ceasefire remained unclear as attacks continued Tuesday.
Iran's foreign minister said that as long as Israel stopped its attacks by 4 a.m. local Tehran time Tuesday, Iran would halt its own. But nearly an hour after that deadline, Israel鈥檚 military warned its public that Iran had launched missiles towards it as sirens sounded.
It鈥檚 unclear what the detected missile launch would do for the ceasefire's timeline.
A short while later, Israel said another barrage from Iran was on its way to the country, urging the public to return to shelters.
Trump's announcement on Truth Social said the ceasefire wouldn't begin until about midnight Tuesday Eastern time. He said it would bring an 鈥淥fficial END鈥 to the war.
Israel doesn't confirm ceasefire but appears to pause strikes
Israel did not immediately acknowledge any ceasefire, but there were no reports of Israeli strikes in Iran after 4 a.m. local. Heavy Israeli strikes continued in Tehran and other cities until shortly before that time. Israel in other conflicts has stepped up its strikes just before ceasefires took effect.
鈥淎s of now, there is NO 鈥榓greement鈥 on any ceasefire or cessation of military operations,鈥 Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote in a post on X. 鈥淗owever, provided that the Israeli regime stops its illegal aggression against the Iranian people no later than 4 am Tehran time, we have no intention to continue our response afterwards.鈥
His message was posted at 4:16 a.m. Tehran time. Araghchi added: 鈥淭he final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later.鈥
The Israeli military declined to comment on Trump鈥檚 ceasefire statement and the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Trump describes conflict as 鈥12 Day War鈥
Trump gave the conflict between Israel and Iran a name: the 鈥12 Day War.鈥 That recalls the 1967 Mideast war, known by some as the 鈥淪ix Day War,鈥 in which Israel fought a group of Arab countries including Egypt, Jordan and Syria.
Trump鈥檚 reference carries emotional weight for the Arab world, particularly Palestinians. In the 1967 war, Israel captured the West Bank and east Jerusalem from Jordan, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, and the Golan Heights from Syria. Though Israel later gave the Sinai back to Egypt, it still holds the other territories.
Trump communicated directly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure the ceasefire, according to a senior White House official who insisted on anonymity to discuss the Monday talks. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff communicated with the Iranians through direct and indirect channels.
The White House has maintained that the Saturday bombing helped get the Israelis to agree to the ceasefire and that the Qatari government helped to broker the deal.
It鈥檚 unclear what role Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran鈥檚 leader, played in the talks. He said earlier on social media that he would not surrender.
Iran attack against US implied willingness to de-escalate
Iran attacked a U.S. base in Qatar on Monday, but appeared to indicate it was prepared to reduce tensions. The U.S. was warned by Iran in advance, and there were no casualties, said Trump, who dismissed the attack as a 鈥渧ery weak response.鈥
Qatar condemned the attack on as 鈥渁 flagrant violation" of its sovereignty, airspace and international law. Qatar said it intercepted all but one missile, though it was not clear if that missile caused any damage.
Iran said the volley matched the number of bombs dropped by the United States on Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend. Iran also said it targeted the base because it was outside of populated areas.
Qatar Maj. Gen. Shayeq Al Hajri said 19 missiles were fired at the base that is home to the Combined Air Operations Center, which provides command and control of air power across the region, as well as the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, the largest such wing in the world. Trump said 14 missiles were fired, 13 were knocked down and one was 鈥渟et free鈥 because it posed no threat.
Iran announced the attack on state television, with a caption calling it 鈥渁 mighty and successful response" to "America鈥檚 aggression.鈥
Earlier reports that a missile was launched at a base housing American forces in Iraq were a false alarm, a senior U.S. military official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly, said debris from a malfunctioning Iranian missile targeting Israel had triggered an alert of an impending attack on the Ain al-Assad base.
By early Tuesday, Qatar Airways resumed its flights after Qatar shut down its airspace over the Iranian attack on Al Udeid Air Base. Flight-tracking data showed commercial aircraft again flying in Qatari airspace, signaling Doha believed the threat on the energy-rich nation had passed.
Israel hones in on symbolic targets
Israel and Iran traded airstrikes early Tuesday morning.
Iran struck Israel with a barrage of missiles and drones while Israel said it attacked 鈥渞egime targets and government repression bodies in the heart of Tehran.鈥
Earlier, Israel鈥檚 military put out a warning that District 6 in Tehran could be struck, while Iran, mirroring the language and maps of the Israeli military, warned people in Ramat Gan it would target 鈥渕ilitary infrastructure鈥 there.
But Israeli officials insisted they did not seek the overthrow of Iran鈥檚 government, their archenemy since the country鈥檚 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The latest strikes unfolded only hours after Trump himself a day after inserting America into the war with its stealth-bomber strike on three Iranian nuclear sites.
鈥淚f the current Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn鈥檛 there be a Regime change???鈥 he asked on his Truth Social website.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later described Trump as 鈥渟imply raising a question.鈥
The U.S. strikes over the weekend had prompted fears of a wider regional conflict. Iran said the U.S. had crossed 鈥渁 very big red line鈥 with its to strike with missiles and 30,000-pound .
Before the news of a ceasefire, an Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss high-level internal deliberations, said Israel aimed to wind down the war in the coming days, but that it would depend on the Iranians.
Israel鈥檚 preferred outcome is for Iran to agree to a ceasefire and reenter negotiations with the U.S. over its nuclear program, the official said. But Israel is prepared for the possibility of an extended low-intensity war of attrition or period of 鈥渜uiet for quiet,鈥 in which it would closely monitor Iran鈥檚 activities and strike if it identifies new threats.
Israel strikes prison known for holding political activists
Before the ceasefire announcement, the Israeli military warned Iranians it would continue to attack military sites around Tehran as its focus shifted to include symbolic targets. The military issued the warning on the social platform X, though Iranians are struggling to access the outside world due to an internet shutdown.
In Tehran, Israel hit the headquarters of the military force that suppressed recent protests and blew open a gate at Evin prison. That facility is known for holding political activists. Iranian state television shared black-and-white surveillance footage of the strike at the facility known for holding dual nationals and Westerners often used by Iran as bargaining chips in negotiations with the West.
Evin also has specialized units for political prisoners run by the paramilitary, all-volunteer Revolutionary Guard, which answers only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The facility is the target of both U.S. and European Union sanctions.
There were no immediate reports of casualties in Iran or significant damage.
Iranian state television aired footage it said was shot inside Evin, with prisoners under control. However, the Washington-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran said many families of detainees 鈥渉ave expressed deep concern about the safety and condition of their loved ones鈥 in the prison.
The Israeli military also confirmed it struck roads around Iran鈥檚 Fordo enrichment facility to obstruct access to the site. The underground site was one of those hit in Sunday鈥檚 attack by the United States. The Israeli military did not elaborate.
In Vienna, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog said he expected there to be heavy damage at the Fordo facility following Sunday鈥檚 U.S. airstrike there with sophisticated bunker-buster bombs.
Several Iranian officials, including Atomic Energy Organization of Iran spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi, have claimed Iran removed nuclear material from targeted sites ahead of time.
Hundreds killed in conflict
In Israel, at least 24 people have been killed and more than 1,000 wounded in the war. Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 974 people and wounded 3,458 others, according to the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists.
The group, which has provided detailed casualty figures from Iranian unrest such as the protests surrounding in 2022, said of those killed, it identified 387 civilians and 268 security force personnel.
The U.S. has evacuated some 250 American citizens and their immediate family members from Israel by government, military and charter flights that began over the weekend, a State Department official said.
There are roughly 700,000 American citizens, most of them dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, believed to be in Israel.
___
Lidman reported from Tel Aviv, Israel. Associated Press writers Josef Federman in Jerusalem, Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, Abby Sewell in Beirut, Elise Morton in London, Geir Moulson in Berlin, Ella Joyner in Brussels, Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Stephanie Liechtenstein in Vienna contributed to this report.
