President Trump says U.S. allies in the Middle East have reached an agreement on the outlines of a deal to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
In a Truth Social post late Saturday, Mr. Trump said the development prompted him to “cancel the attack” on Iran that had been planned for the weekend. His administration’s goal now is to “rapidly make a deal,” he posted.
“We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to,” the president posted. “This would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, and an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.”
Mr. Trump added that Israel “joins me in this commitment.”
The Iranian government has yet to publicly announce that the outlines of a deal are in place for the ceasefire to resume.
Iran’s defense minister posted on X that the Islamic Republic was “neither surprised nor passive” following Trump’s announcement and said Iran continues to remain alert in the face of concrete threats from the U.S.
The announcement by the U.S. came hours after Mr. Trump held discussions about the region with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Saturday, according to Axios and regional news outlets.
The Saudis are concerned that Tehran could respond to U.S. strikes with attacks on civilian infrastructure in the Persian Gulf, according to a person briefed on the call. Crown Prince Mohammed asked Mr. Trump to prioritize dialogue with Iran and push forward with diplomatic talks. The Saudi leader sought clarity on next steps from potential strikes.
Saudi Arabia last week joined the U.S. in strikes against logistics and weapons sites being used by Iran-backed militias in Iraq. The strikes came shortly after Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman met Mr. Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance separately for meetings in Washington on Wednesday to discuss Iran war strategy.
Officials from Qatar have mediated among the parties, as White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff represents the U.S. in ongoing deliberations.
An official involved in the mediation said the newest proposal calls for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and halting attacks across the region, including those by Iran-backed militias. The U.S., in exchange, would end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil as stated in the tentative ceasefire deal, the official said.
The announcement to return to the negotiating table and halt attacks on Iran is another quick reversal by the administration: Mr. Trump said Friday during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, Maryland, that the U.S. military’s strikes would be “going big.”
The status of the conflict has been in flux since a tenuous ceasefire agreement was announced in June. That memorandum of agreement crumbled as Iranian forces resumed attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The war has become a sore spot for Republicans ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, with as much as 64% of Americans saying that the war in Iran is not worth fighting, according to polling by The Associated Press. The poll was conducted at the end of July as the U.S. and Iran had paused exchanges in strikes.
Former members of the Republican establishment, many close to the president, have been ostracized from the party over their views on the conflict. Former members of Congress and the Trump administration met Saturday with conservative pundit Tucker Carlson, with former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia posting a photo of the gathering on social media.
“We said no more foreign wars and we meant it and supported Donald Trump because he made that promise,” Ms. Greene wrote in the post. “But he’s betrayed us all.”
The gathering was also attended by Rep. Thomas Massie, Kentucky Republican, and Joe Kent, the former director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center who resigned in protest over the current conflict in the Middle East. Mr. Massie, who has served in Congress for 15 years, was beaten in the Republican primary by an opponent supported by Mr. Trump.
Since the war began, 18 U.S. service members have been killed, but the Trump administration has sought to revise those numbers. Pentagon officials say the total reflects losses before and after the ceasefire was announced, a framing they say is not accurate.
The four most recent service members killed in the fighting have been placed in the category of “Overseas Operations” on the official Defense Casualty Analysis System, which Pentagon officials have pointed to as the definitive source on the numbers of dead and wounded. Operations Epic Fury and Inherent Resolve are listed as categories.
The Army’s Pfc. Isabella Gonzales, Staff Sgt. Angel Rampersad, Staff Sgt. Emmanuel Swinton and 1st Lt. James Feehan were killed in action in the Gulf region conflict since the start of July.
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