An exasperated Donald Trump was visibly angry with both Israel and Iran on Tuesday after both sides violated a US-brokered truce minutes after it came into effect.
The US president boasted of a “complete and total ceasefire” between the warring sides, but each accused the other of breaking the arrangement. Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Iran launched a missile at 7.06am local time, six minutes after it came into effect, and two additional missiles at 10.25am. The Israeli military said it earlier “forcefully attacked in the heart of Tehran” overnight.
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As he left the White House for the Nato summit at The Hague, Mr Trump swore in frustration as he responded to questions.
“Iran violated it, but Israel violated it too,” he told reporters. “Israel, as soon as we made the deal, they came out and they dropped a load of bombs the likes of which I’ve never seen before. The biggest load that we’ve seen.
“I’m not happy with Israel. You know, when I say ‘OK, you have 12 hours,’ you don’t go out in the first hour and just drop everything you have on them. So I’m not happy with them. I’m not happy with Iran either.
“You know what? We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f*** they’re doing.”
Mr Trump followed his comments with a demand on his Truth Social platform, directed at Israel: “Do not drop those bombs. If you do it is a major violation.”
A White House official said Mr Trump spoke to Mr Netanyahu from aboard Air Force and didn't mince his words. The president was “exceptionally firm and direct” about “what needed to happen to sustain the ceasefire”, the official said.
Mr Netanyahu's office acknowledged that Israel had bombed a radar site near Tehran in what it said was retaliation for Iranian missiles fired three-and-a-half hours after the ceasefire had been due to begin.
Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian said later that Tehran would not violate the ceasefire unless Israel did so, and that it was prepared to return to the negotiating table, according to state-run Nournews.
The ceasefire was announced after US bombing raids over the weekend that Mr Trump says “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
Oil prices fell and share markets rose worldwide at the prospect of an end to the conflict.
World leaders welcomed the apparent pause in hostilities, though noted that the situation was delicate.
“That ceasefire needs to be maintained, and that will be the focus of our attention, our engagement, our discussions, because that ceasefire provides the space for the negotiations that need to take place,” Sir Keir Starmer said as he arrived at the Nato summit. “It will have to be negotiations … to ensure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon capability and that is very important for safety and security, not just in the region, but more widely.”
He also defended the US bombing raids on Iran, describing the action as “the Americans alleviating a threat to nuclear weaponry by the Iranians and bringing about a ceasefire”.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, at least 44 people were killed by Israeli forces on Tuesday according to witnesses and hospitals. In central Gaza, three witnesses said Israeli forces opened fire as people advanced east towards aid trucks south of Wadi Gaza. Israel's military said it was reviewing the incident, which took place near the Netzarim corridor, a road that separates northern and southern Gaza.
Gaza Health Ministry added that Israel's 21-month military operation in the war-torn enclave has now killed 56,077 Palestinians.
