Trump pauses new strikes, says parameters set for deal to end Iran war

Trump added that the emerging deal would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, and an end to Iran's nuclear threat

US President Donald Trump in a Saturday evening social media post claimed that the parameters of a deal to end the Iran war have been reached and said that he would hold off on ordering new strikes in the five-month old conflict for now.

Trump added that the emerging deal "would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Starit, and an end to Iran's nuclear threat."  "Based on this request, I have agreed, for the future benefit of the world and, likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran, to cancel the attack, subject to being able to rapidly make a deal," Trump said.

 

He added that Israel has agreed to join the US in the commitment to try to complete the agreement with Iran that would bring about an end to the war.

Earlier Saturday, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto leader, in a phone call with Trump raised concerns about the US potentially escalating the conflict with Iran, according to a person familiar with the leaders' discussion.

The discussion, which was first reported on by the news outlet Axios, came as Trump weighed whether to carry out new strikes on Iran.

The Saudis, according to the person briefed on the substance of the call but not authorised to comment publicly, are concerned that if the US targets Iran's energy infrastructure or carries out massive strikes on other key infrastructure that Tehran could respond by carrying out attacks on the kingdom's and other Gulf countries' energy infrastructure.

The crown prince during Saturday's call sought clarity from Trump on what potential new action he's weighing to take against Iran, the person said.

A White House official, who was not authorised to comment publicly and requested anonymity, confirmed the leaders spoke on Saturday but did not offer any detail about the substance of their conversation.

Saudi Arabia earlier this week joined the US in striking multiple logistics and weapons sites used by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, but has been urging the US and Iran to get back to the negotiating table to find an endgame to the five-month old conflict.

The crown prince also dispatched his brother, Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman, to Washington on Wednesday for separate meetings with Trump and Vice President JD Vance to discuss Iran strategy.

And Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday at the White House, their first in-person meeting since launching the war in February. The Israeli leader has urged Trump to continue to prosecute the war against Iran.

The stakes for continued US military action are high for Trump and his party as the conflict, unpopular among many Americans, has jolted the world economy just months before critical midterm elections in November.

The president has vowed to take retaliatory action after the US military thwarted a surprise attack earlier this week by Iran on a US base in Jordan.

Trump had told reporters on Friday that "we just want to win" in Iran and said the US will hit Iran "very hard" until they can't take it anymore. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt expressed frustration that Tehran had last month signed a memorandum of understanding with the US on a truce but then quickly "broke it, shot at commercial ships, and killed American soldiers."  On Saturday, the US State Department issued new security alerts for Americans in 10 countries in the region to exercise heightened caution due to the escalating tensions with Iran.

The warnings, covering Bahrain, Israel, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates -- urged US citizens to prepare for the possibility of flight cancellations, temporary airspace closures and other travel disruptions.