Key facts
- Iran and the U.S. have agreed to halt recent hostilities and renew talks, according to Axios.
- The agreement follows days of military exchanges around the Strait of Hormuz.
- Technical talks on the memorandum of understanding are scheduled to restart.
- President Donald Trump had previously threatened Iran with military action.
- A meeting between Iran and the U.S. is planned for Tuesday in Qatar.
- Iran launched missiles and drones at U.S. military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain.
Iran and the United States have reportedly agreed to halt recent hostilities and renew talks, potentially ending tit-for-tat strikes that had threatened to undermine a prior interim peace agreement. The agreement follows days of military exchanges between the two countries in and around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil transportation. Technical talks on all aspects of the memorandum of understanding are scheduled to restart. Analysts attributed the recent flare-up in hostilities to ambiguity in the ceasefire arrangements, allowing both sides to interpret key provisions differently. This development comes after President Donald Trump had previously threatened Iran with military action if it did not adhere to the agreement to end hostilities. A meeting between Iran and the U.S. is planned for Tuesday in Qatar.
Iran launched missiles and drones at U.S. military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain early Sunday, shortly after President Donald Trump threatened that the Islamic Republic would cease to exist if it did not honor the agreement to end the war. The U.S. military said earlier it had struck Iran again, hours after a tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz. Israel also said it had struck Iran-backed armed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. The 14-point interim peace accord was meant to halt the fighting, which the U.S. and Israel started on February 28, and reopen the strait while talks proceeded on issues such as Iran's nuclear program.
Kuwait's army said its air defenses were responding to missile and drone attacks, while Bahrain said sirens had sounded there. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement its navy and air forces had launched missile and drone operations targeting U.S. military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain. The Guards said U.S. strikes had violated the ceasefire and "will result in the complete halt of all diplomatic processes," state-run Press TV said. A U.S. official confirmed Iran had targeted U.S. facilities, telling Reuters there were no reported U.S. casualties or major damage to U.S. sites in the Middle East. Hours later, alarms sounded for a second time in Bahrain, where authorities said an Iranian attack damaged a residential building in Muharraq province, with no casualties reported. The Kuwaiti army said it had intercepted two ballistic missiles with no damage or casualties. Separately, Qatar said one of its nationals had died after sustaining injuries from shrapnel aboard a vessel that had gone missing on Saturday.