Iran and Israel halt attacks after Trump urges ceasefire

Iran and Israel said Monday they had halted attacks on each other after a sharp exchange of fire raised fears that a fragile truce could unravel, with President Trump publicly pressing both sides to “immediately stop ‘shooting.’”

The pause followed Israeli strikes on Beirut, Iranian missile launches toward Israel and Israeli attacks on what it described as military targets inside Iran. Both countries warned they would retaliate if attacked again.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was holding fire “at the moment,” while stressing that the conflict was not over. “Iran and Hezbollah are weaker than ever, and we are stronger than ever — but our struggle with them is not over yet,” he said. “Right now, the fire has been halted.”

Netanyahu added that if “the terrorist regime in Iran makes the mistake and attacks us again, we will respond forcefully.” He said Israel had “a full right to self-defense” and had discussed that position with Trump.

Iran’s armed forces said they had stopped operations after delivering what they called a “painful response” to Israel. Tehran warned that “much more severe and crushing measures than before will follow” if Israeli attacks continue, including in southern Lebanon, where Israel is fighting the Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

Trump spoke with Netanyahu on Monday, the White House confirmed, the second call between the two leaders in two days. Trump wrote on Truth Social that “Israel and Iran… are looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE!” and said final negotiations on peace were proceeding. In an interview with Axios, Trump said Iran had told the United States it would not carry out more attacks and had asked Washington to tell Israel to stop. He said he warned Netanyahu: “Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon.”

In a call with the BBC, Trump denied that Netanyahu had defied him by launching strikes, saying, “No, no. They had already gone. They had already gone. They were already on their way.” Asked how he persuaded Netanyahu to stop, Trump said: “All I did is say, ‘We have to use sense’. We’re very close to signing a very powerful deal, a very good deal.”

The BBC reported that the war began Feb. 28, when Israel and the United States launched a joint attack on Iran that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior officials. The conflict later spread across the region, including Lebanon and Gulf states hosting U.S. military facilities. According to the BBC, at least 3,468 people have been killed in Iran during the war, citing Iran’s Martyrs Foundation, while HRANA put the toll from U.S. and Israeli attacks at 3,636, including 1,701 civilians.

Fighting also continued in Lebanon. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said an Israeli strike in Tyre killed five people and wounded eight Monday. CBS News reported the ministry said four of those killed were Red Cross paramedics, while the BBC reported the Red Cross said four rescuers were among the injured. Hezbollah said it fired rockets at Israeli army vehicles and soldiers in southern Lebanon.

Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, said Israeli forces would continue operations against Hezbollah and rejected Iran’s attempt to link Lebanon to the Iran-Israel fighting. “We reject Iran’s threats outright,” Katz said.

The conflict also touched shipping lanes. U.S. Central Command said an F/A-18 Super Hornet fired on the empty tanker M/T Marivex in the Gulf of Oman after it allegedly violated a blockade against Iran and failed to comply with U.S. directions. Central Command said the vessel was “no longer sailing to Iran.” Indian officials and a crew union said the crew was uninjured and evacuated.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels, another Iranian-backed group, said Monday they were banning Israeli vessels from key Red Sea shipping lanes and announced a missile attack on Israel, CBS News reported.