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Iran and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire after the US pounded Tehran's nuclear facilities, US President Donald Trump announced-- a claim rejected by Iranian foreign minister. Trump said Monday evening on Truth Social, "It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE".The ceasefire will start in six hours " around midnight Washington time and 9:30 am in India -- "when Israel and Iran have wound down and completed their in progress, final missions", he said. In a dramatic end to the missile war between Iran and Israel into which the US was drawn in with both missiles and B2 stealth bombers, Trump, who had showered invectives on Tehran for years, wrote, "I want to thank Iran".

However, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi took to the social media platform, X, and said, "As Iran has repeatedly made clear: Israel launched war on Iran, not the other way around. As of now, there is NO "agreement" on any ceasefire or cessation of military operations." However, he added that the Israeli regime stopped its "illegal aggression" against the Iranian people no later than 4 am Tehran time. "We have no intention to continue our response afterwards. The final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later," he added.

Trump brokered ceasefire: White House

A senior White House official said Trump had brokered the deal in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel had agreed so long as Iran did not launch further attacks. Trump appeared to suggest that Israel and Iran would have some time to complete any missions that are underway, at which point the ceasefire would begin in a staged process.

ALSO READ: Israel Military Says Iran Launches Missiles Hours After Trump Announces Ceasefire, Sirens Heard In Multiple Cities

Iran denies ever having a nuclear weapons program but Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has said that if it wanted to, world leaders "wouldn't be able to stop us". Israel, which is not a party to the international Non-Proliferation Treaty, is the only country in the Middle East believed to have nuclear weapons. Israel does not deny or confirm that.

Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani secured Tehran's agreement during a call with Iranian officials, an official briefed on the negotiations told news agency Reuters on Tuesday.

US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US special envoy Steve Witkoff were in direct and indirect contact with the Iranians, the White House official said.

ALSO READ: Iran Retaliates With Strikes On US Airbase: What Is Qatar’s Al-Udeid Airbase And Why It’s Important For America

Hours earlier, three Israeli officials had signaled Israel was looking to wrap up its campaign in Iran soon and had passed the message on to the United States. Netanyahu had told government ministers whose discussions ended early on Tuesday not to speak publicly, Israel's Channel 12 television reported.

End to the fighting?

There did not appear to be calm yet in the region. The Israeli military issued two evacuation warnings in less than two hours to residents of areas in the Iranian capital Tehran, one late on Monday and one early on Tuesday. Israeli Army radio reported early on Tuesday that alarms were activated in the southern Golan Heights area due to fears of hostile aircraft intrusion. Earlier on Monday, Trump said he would encourage Israel to proceed towards peace after dismissing Iran's attack on an American air base that caused no injuries and thanking Tehran for the early notice of the strikes. Iran's handling of the attack recalled earlier clashes with the United States and Israel, with Tehran seeking a balance between saving face with a military response but without provoking a cycle of escalation it can't afford. 

(With inputs from agency)