Donald Trump says a “full, large-scale assault on Iran” was planned for Tuesday, but the US President says the attack has now been paused at the request of key leaders in the Middle East.
The US President revealed plans for the imminent attack on Monday, but warned that although that had been paused, the US was now on standby to strike at his command.
Taking to Truth Social, Mr Trump said that the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, requested he “hold off” on a planned attack due to “serious negotiations taking place”.
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“I have been asked by the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow, in that serious negotiations are now taking place,” Mr Trump wrote.
“In their opinion, as Great Leaders and Allies, a Deal will be made, which will be very acceptable to the United States of America, as well as all Countries in the Middle East, and beyond.”
Mr Trump again stated the deal will include “NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS FOR IRAN”.
“Based on my respect for the above mentioned Leaders, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Daniel Caine, and The United States Military, that we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow,” Mr Trump announced.
However, his pause came with a warning to Iran over a brutal new attack.
“(I) have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large-scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached,” he said.
The fresh US attack would bring to an end the delicate ceasefire that Iran and the US have largely followed now for weeks, something that has stood as long-term peace negotiations appear to have stalled.
Although Mr Trump has not previously announced his plan to attack Iran on Tuesday, an ominous warning was issued on Sunday.
“For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!” he wrote on Truth Social.
In recent days, Mr Trump has spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Chinese President Xi Jinping about the Iran war.
Earlier on Monday, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that the US had softened its position on some issues after Iran sent it a new peace proposal.
Pakistan, which has conveyed messages between the sides in the war in the Middle East since hosting the only round of peace talks last month, had shared the latest proposal with US, a source said.
The sides “keep changing their goalposts,” the Pakistani source said, adding: “We don’t have much time.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei confirmed that Iran’s views had been “conveyed to the American side through Pakistan” but gave no details.
