Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged both the Iranian leadership and Trump to implement a two-week ceasefire “to allow diplomacy to achieve conclusive termination of war.”
US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington DC on April 06, 2026.(photo credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)ByGOLDIE KATZ, ARIELLA ROITMAN Updated: US President Donald Trump announced a “double-sided ceasefire” between the US and Iran in a post on Truth Social early on Wednesday, stating that Operation Epic Fury will be suspended for two weeks so an agreement regarding the ceasefire can be finalized.
Israel also agreed to the temporary ceasefire and will suspend attacks on Iran as negotiations proceed, a senior White House official told CNN shortly after the announcement was made.
Trump stated that Iran had submitted a 10-point proposal for ending the ongoing war, providing a “workable basis on which to negotiate.” He asserted that “almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, adding that “a two-week period will allow the agreement to be finalized and consummated.”
He additionally claimed that his reasoning for accepting the ceasefire proposal was due to the US having “already met and exceeded all Military objectives” in the region.
According to a New York Times report citing two US officials, Trump made a phone call to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shortly before issuing the announcement.
US President Donald Trump announces a two-week ceasefire between US, Iran on April 7, 2026. (credit: SCREENSHOT/TRUTH SOCIAL)
Netanyahu expressed support for the ceasefire deal, provided Iran immediately reopens the Strait of Hormuz and stops all attacks on Israel and countries in the region, in a statement released after the announcement.
He added that Israel supports the US effort “to ensure that Iran no longer poses a nuclear, missile, and terror threat to America, Israel, Iran’s Arab neighbors, and the world.”
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who proposed the two-week ceasefire, announced on X/Twitter that the ceasefire will immediately be implemented and will include Lebanon and other nations in the region.
The claim that Lebanon is included in the deal, however, was disputed by Netanyahu, who explicitly stated that the deal does not include Lebanon.
Sharif also stated that negotiations regarding the agreement will be held on Friday in Islamabad, Pakistan.
In a statement on X/Twitter regarding the ceasefire, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Iran will cease “defensive operations” if all attacks are halted.
Araghchi also assured that for the two weeks, “safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces.”
Despite the ceasefire announcement, Iran continued to launch a series of missile barrages towards Israel and Gulf nations on Wednesday night.
A US defense official told Axios that while the ceasefire is in effect, it may take time for the order to halt strikes to filter down to the lower ranks of Iran’s military.
Pakistan urged two-week ceasefire
The ceasefire announcement came following an earlier Pakistani request for Trump to add a two-week extension to a deadline he imposed on Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The deadline was originally set for 8 p.m. EST on Tuesday.
Sharif urged both the Iranian leadership and Trump to implement a two-week ceasefire “to allow diplomacy to achieve conclusive termination of war” in a post on X/Twitter on Tuesday.
“Diplomatic efforts for peaceful settlement of the ongoing war in the Middle East are progressing steadily, strongly, and powerfully with the potential to lead to substantive results in the near future,” Sharif asserted.
Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, praised Pakistan’s ceasefire-seeking efforts, stating that a step forward in this “critical, sensitive stage” has occurred in a post on X/Twitter.
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held a call with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Muhammad Ishaq Dar, to coordinate joint efforts to help the US and Iran “reach understandings,” according to Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Dar and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan additionally held a call to discuss the diplomatic efforts, according to a Reuters report citing Turkish foreign ministry sources.
‘A whole civilization will die tonight,’ Trump threatens
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump threatened that “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again” if no deal is reached by the deadline.
He asserted that on Tuesday night, “one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the world” will occur and that “47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end.”
Reuters, Corinne Baum, and Aaron Glick contributed to this report.
According to IRNA, Iran is demanding a complete end to the fighting in the region, along with a protocol to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
PEOPLE WALK on a street, near an anti-US billboard, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, April 5, 2026.(photo credit: MAJID ASGARIPOUR/WANA (WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY) VIA REUTERS) ByAMICHAI STEIN, DANYA SAPERSTEIN, REUTERS Updated:
Iran has rejected the proposal for a temporary ceasefire with the United States, Iranian state news agency IRNA reported on Monday.
According to IRNA, Iran is demanding a complete end to the fighting in the region, along with a protocol to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s response conveyed to mediators consists of 10 clauses, the report noted. “The gaps are very significant,” a source familiar with the details told The Jerusalem Post.
US President Donald Trump has threatened to rain “hell” on Tehran if it did not make a deal by the end of Tuesday that would allow traffic to start moving again through the vital route for global energy supplies.
While answering reporter questions outside the White House on Monday, Trump said that the war could end “very quickly” if Iran went along with the deal, adding that the people the US is currently negotiating with were “reasonable and not as radicalized.” He stressed that the Tuesday deadline he has set for Iran to make a deal is final, adding that Iran’s proposal was significant but not good enough.
A framework to end hostilities has been put together by Pakistan and exchanged with Iran and the US overnight, a source aware of the proposals said, outlining a two-tier approach with an immediate ceasefire followed by a comprehensive agreement.
“All elements need to be agreed today,” the source said, adding that the initial understanding would be structured as a memorandum of understanding finalized electronically through Pakistan, the sole communication channel in the talks.
Phase one would involve a 45-day ceasefire, during which a permanent end to the war would be negotiated. Phase one could be extended if more time was needed for talks, Axios reported, citing several US and Israeli sources.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addresses a special session of the Conference on Disarmament at the United Nations, aside of U.S.-Iran talks in Geneva, Switzerland, February 17, 2026. (credit: Pierre Albouy/Reuters)According to the sources, mediators think that only a final deal will lead to fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz and to a solution to the problem of Iran’s highly enriched uranium.
Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday Tehran had formulated positions and demands based on its interests and communicated them through intermediaries, in response to ceasefire proposals.
Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said details of the response would be announced in due time, but added negotiations were “incompatible with ultimatums and threats to commit war crimes.”
“Iran does not hesitate to clearly express what it considers its legitimate demands and doing so should not be interpreted as a sign of compromise, but rather as a reflection of its confidence in defending its positions,” Baghaei told a press conference. He said earlier US demands, such as a 15-point plan, were rejected for being excessive.
Mediators work on partial measures from Iran, US
Mediators are currently working on partial measures Iran can take to build confidence regarding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and its uranium stockpile, sources told Axios.
According to two of the sources, these two issues are not ones Iran will fully give up on in exchange for a 45-day ceasefire.
Mediators are also working on measures the US could take to address some of Iran’s demands.
Iranian mediators have made clear that they do not want a Gaza or Lebanon situation “where there is a ceasefire on paper but where the US and Israel can attack again whenever they want to,” Axios wrote.
Mediators have urged Iranian officials not to delay any further, stressing that the next 48 hours are the last opportunity for them to reach a deal.
Sources told Axios that the chances of reaching a deal are slim, but this is the only chance to avoid a dramatic escalation in the war.
