Iran and the United States confirm a two-week ceasefire

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed a two-week ceasefire between Iran and the United States. The ceasefire includes reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Supreme National Security Council ratified the arrangement. Negotiations were set to start on Friday in Islamabad, Pakistan.

The confirmation followed an announcement by United States president Donald Trump. He said that, based on conversations with Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif and field marshal Asim Munir, he had agreed to suspend bombing and attacks on Iran for two weeks. The pause was subject to Iran agreeing to a complete, immediate, and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and to time for an agreement. A ceasefire is a mutual halt in fighting, and a ratification by the Supreme National Security Council is the Iranian security body's formal approval.

The American side of the Islamabad talks was to be led by vice president JD Vance, with senior presidential adviser Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Pakistan had earlier passed a ceasefire plan, described as the Islamabad Accord, calling for an immediate halt, reopening of the strait, and a 15 to 20 day period of talks. Iran had also sent a response rejecting a temporary ceasefire and listing 10 demands, including a solution to regional conflicts, lifting of sanctions, reconstruction, and a protocol to reopen the strait. The later confirmation by Araghchi is the Iranian statement that a two-week ceasefire was in place.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump both said the ceasefire does not include Lebanon. Iran and Pakistan had said otherwise in their versions of the agreement. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Netanyahu and Trump would keep discussing whether Lebanon could be included. The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow sea passage between Iran and Oman through which a large share of the world's seaborne oil usually moves.

After the announcement, an Israeli military spokesperson said Israel was still launching attacks on Iran. President Masoud Pezeshkian said the ceasefire with Israel and the United States had been violated by bombings of Iranian islands and of Lebanon. Parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf later made the same point, also citing what he called a denial of Iran's ability to enrich uranium. Shipping companies were cautious: Maersk said it would be cautious about using the strait despite the ceasefire, and Hapag-Lloyd said it still did not plan to resume transits and would need six to eight weeks for normal operations to return.

The two-week ceasefire was confirmed by Iran on April 8 and tied to reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Talks were scheduled in Islamabad with Vance, Kushner, and Witkoff on the American side. Israel and the United States said Lebanon was outside the deal, while Iran said the ceasefire was already being broken. Oil prices fell below 95 dollars a barrel and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by more than 1,000 points after the ceasefire announcement.