Tel Aviv/Tehran, June 8, (dpa/GNA) – Iran and Israel said on Monday, that they would halt hostilities for the time being, after trading hefty attacks for the first time since a ceasefire took effect in April.
On Monday afternoon, Iran’s military leadership declared its attacks against Israel over, less than 24 hours after firing its first missiles in two months at Israel. In a statement broadcast by state radio, the military leadership said the Islamic Republic had delivered a “painful response” to Israel, in support of Lebanon, and announced the cessation of its military operations.
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, later confirmed the halt in fighting, which had previously been reported by Israeli media. In a video message, he warned, however, that Israel would respond with full force, should Iran make a mistake and attack again. “Israel has a full right to self-defence, and we are exercising it to the extent necessary,” Netanyahu said.
US President Donald Trump, in a post on his Truth Social network, said both sides “are looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE! Final negotiations on ‘Peace’ are proceeding.” He said the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key passageway for global oil exports, “will remain in place, and in full force and effect, until a ‘Final Deal’ is reached. Things should move quickly.”
Trump has often posted that a solution to the conflict was close at hand only to see it continue.
Following the Iranian attacks on Sunday evening against Israel, the Israeli military carried out what it called a “large-scale attack” against Iran. Dozens of Israeli fighter jets targeted “strategic defence systems” of Iran’s leadership. A petrochemical industry facility in south-west Iran was also attacked, it said.
The Iranian Tasnim news agency, reported that at least 15 people were injured in the attacks, citing the country’s emergency services. Iran in turn responded with several waves of attacks, with sirens sounding in many places in northern, southern and central Israel.
Israeli military sources said Iran had fired more than 20 ballistic missiles towards Israel since Sunday evening. Iran justified its initial attacks on Sunday evening by citing “repeated violations” of the separately agreed, but so far extremely fragile ceasefire in Lebanon by the Israeli military. Specifically, Iran said it was responding to Israeli strikes on suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut.
Israel said on Sunday, it had targeted “terrorist headquarters” in response to shelling by Hezbollah. The Shiite militia is Iran’s most important non-state ally. Israel and Lebanon agreed last Thursday on a renewed attempt to implement a ceasefire. One condition was that Hezbollah completely halt its attacks on Israel.
The militia itself was not involved in the talks, flatly rejected the agreement and continued its attacks on Israel. The Lebanese government is not a party to the conflict and has only very limited influence over Hezbollah.
It remained unclear how long the halt in fighting would hold, with both sides trading threats. Israeli media, citing an unnamed senior Israeli government official, reported that while Israel was halting its attacks on Iran, attacks in Lebanon would continue with “full force.” Should the Lebanese Hezbollah militia fire on northern Israel again, the suburbs of the capital Beirut would also be attacked once more, the news portal ynet cited the official as saying.
The Israeli broadcaster Kan also reported that Israel would halt its attacks on Iran, but not on southern Lebanon. There was initially no official confirmation, but an Israeli source familiar with the matter confirmed the reports to dpa.
Iran’s military headquarters, Khatam al-Anbiya, had earlier warned that should the hostilities continue, including attacks by Israel in southern Lebanon, “tougher and more devastating measures than before” would be taken. That warning was followed by new Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah in turn firing rockets at Israeli soldiers stationed there.
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz, meanwhile vowed that any attacks by Hezbollah on northern Israel would be met with a counter-attack on Beirut’s suburbs. In his video message, Netanyahu also warned that Israel’s conflict with Iran and Hezbollah is not yet over, while military sources said Israel’s military had been braced for a conflict with Iran lasting at least several days.
Initially though, things looked calmer, with Iran lifting restrictions on air traffic after closing its entire airspace in the afternoon. “As the necessary security conditions have been met and the required consultations with the relevant authorities have taken place, the flight restrictions have been lifted,” Abusar Shirudi, head of the Civil Aviation Authority, told the Tasnim news agency on Monday.
In addition to the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, a ceasefire between the US and Iran has been in place since April 8, agreed more than a month after the US and Israel began their war against Iran on February 28. Trump is seeking an agreement with Iran to end the conflict in the long term.
The latest developments, however, are a major stress test for the talks. Trump has so far played down the consequences and said Netanyahu would also have to accept an agreement. “I call all the shots. He doesn’t call the shots,” the US president was quoted as saying in a phone interview with the Financial Times, referring to the Israeli prime minister.
GNA