By Samuel Solomon
The United States and Iran have reached a peace agreement that establishes an “immediate and permanent” end to military operations across all fronts, including Lebanon.
This development, announced by the mediator Pakistan, signals a significant step toward concluding more than three months of conflict in the Middle East.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif shared the news on X, stating that a peace deal “has been REACHED” and that an official signing ceremony will take place on June 19 in Switzerland.
US President Donald Trump also confirmed the completion of the agreement with Iran in a statement released on Sunday, coinciding with his 80th birthday.
“I hereby fully authorise the toll-free opening of the Strait of Hormuz and, simultaneously herewith, authorise the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade. Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”
There was no immediate confirmation from Iran, which just hours earlier had vowed to retaliate against a strike by Israel against Iranian ally Hezbollah in the suburbs of Beirut, which threatened to push back an agreement.
It had declined on Sunday to offer a clear timeline for reaching a peace deal.
But later in the day, Pakistan’s Sharif made the announcement that a deal had been struck, thanking the US and Iran “for finding a diplomatic solution to the conflict.”
“Both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon,” Sharif wrote, adding thanks to leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey for their support in the mediation effort.
It was a rollercoaster Sunday, with Trump in the morning angrily blaming Israel for delaying its signing with the airstrike on Beirut, which he said had delayed the agreement.
The last time Israel hit the Beirut suburbs, it sparked one of the strongest jolts yet to a ceasefire that has largely held since April, with Iran firing off a retaliatory missile barrage and Israel responding with strikes.
Tehran has long demanded that any agreement to halt the war must include the parallel conflict in Lebanon, where Israel has been pursuing a campaign against Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The war began in late February, with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, which retaliated with attacks on Israel and US allies in the region, and by virtually blocking ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil and natural gas supplies. The US retaliated to that by blockading ship traffic to Iranian ports.
