U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would agree to a “double-sided” ceasefire with Iran that will see him hold off from further attacks for two weeks in exchange for Tehran agreeing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump made the announcement on social media less than two hours before his deadline for what he threatened would be the destruction of Iran’s “civilization.” He said it came after conversations with Pakistani mediators who had been pursuing an end to the war.
“Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump wrote.
“This will be a double sided CEASEFIRE!”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a statement that “safe passage” through the Strait of Hormuz will be allowed for two weeks with “coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.”
“If attacks against Iran are halted, our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defensive operations,” he wrote in the statement on behalf of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.
Iranian state TV flashed an announcement claiming that Trump had accepted Iran’s terms for ending the war, describing it as a “humiliating retreat” by the U.S. president.
Trump acknowledged a 10-point proposal from Iran on ending the war, which he called “a workable basis on which to negotiate” a long-term peace deal despite rejecting it a day earlier.
“Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated,” he wrote.
He added the U.S. had “already met and exceeded all Military objectives, and are very far along with a definitive Agreement concerning Longterm PEACE with Iran, and PEACE in the Middle East.”
Earlier Tuesday, Trump warned that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran did not meet his deadline of 8 p.m. Eastern to agree to a deal with the U.S. and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which has choked off a significant portion of global oil supplies.
“I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Tuesday morning, 12 hours ahead of his deadline.
However, he added that there was potential for something “wonderful” to happen in Tehran.
“However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?” he added.
https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/2041490569105469835?s=20
Iranian officials had vowed “an unforgettable hit” and “immediate and proportionate reciprocal measures” if Trump carried through with his threats. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian took to social media on Tuesday to announce that he had registered for military service, along with 14 million Iranians.
Pakistan, which was working towards mediating a ceasefire, urged Trump to extend his deadline and Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz.
“To allow diplomacy to run its course, I earnestly request President Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks. Pakistan, in all sincerity, requests the Iranian brothers to open Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture,” Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif posted on social media.
Sharif also urged “all warring parties to observe a ceasefire everywhere for two weeks to allow diplomacy to achieve conclusive termination of war.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Tuesday that Iran still had time to make a deal with the U.S.
“The Iranian regime has until 8PM Eastern Time to meet the moment and make a deal with the United States. Only the President knows where things stand and what he will do,” Leavitt said.
Trump’s threat against Iran’s civilization came after he vowed to bomb every Iranian power plant and bridge over the weekend unless Iran, and dismissed concerns that such actions could amount to a war crime.
Volker Türk, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, called Trump’s latest threats “sickening” in a statement.
“Carrying through on such threats amounts to the most serious international crimes,” he said. “Threats that spread fear and terror among civilians are unacceptable and must cease immediately.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that Canada “expects all parties in this conflict” to respect international law.
“That means not targeting, certainly, civilians or civilian infrastructure. And we urge all parties in this war to follow those responsibilities as a point we’ve made publicly and privately,” he said.
There are “some negotiations going on,” Carney told reporters Tuesday, and added that Canada was “not at the center of those negotiations although we have some visibility to them.”
“There is often a gap between what’s said publicly and what’s happening privately,” Carney said at a press conference in Brampton, Ont.
Iranian state media reported Monday that Tehran had rejected a U.S. ceasefire proposal delivered by Pakistani mediators and said a permanent end to the war was necessary.
The Iranian response consisted of 10 clauses, including an end to conflicts in the region, a protocol for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, lifting of sanctions and reconstruction, the official IRNA news agency added.
Trump, in turn, rejected the Iranian response and said his Tuesday deadline was final.
Trump’s shifting deadlines for the conflict had raised uncertainty over where the conflict was headed as it entered its second month.
On March 21, Trump issued his first ultimatum to Tehran, giving them 48 hours to allow ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had blocked in response to U.S. and Israeli strikes.
Trump posted on Truth Social that if Iran doesn’t “FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS.”
Iran had until the evening of March 23.
However, 12 hours before that deadline, Trump took to Truth Social again to announce that he had decided to postpone the strikes against Iran.
“I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD,” he wrote, adding that was subject to the success of the discussions.
That pushed the deadline out to the end of that week.
On March 26, just before the deadline, Trump first doubled down on his threats, adding that there was “NO TURNING BACK.”
Later that day, however, he postponed his deadline another 10 days to April 6 at 8 p.m. Eastern.
On March 30, Trump put celebrating progress in the talks with Iran while also expanding his threatened bombing if a deal wasn’t “shortly reached,” adding that “it probably will be.”
“We will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!),” he wrote.
On Easter Sunday, in an expletive-laden post on Truth Social, Trump threatened Iran’s power plants and bridges if they did not open the Strait – and extended his deadline once again for 24 hours.
“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!” Trump said, warning Iranians to “open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH!”
Shortly after that, he simply posted: “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time!”
He confirmed to reporters Monday that the time referred to his final deadline.
—With files from Global’s Reggie Cecchini and the Associated Press and Reuters
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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