Trump walks back threat to destroy Iranian civilization

Tehran has claimed it has achieved a great victory and forced Washington to accept its 10-point plan

President Donald Trump has suspended his looming attack on Iran’s energy infrastructure, announcing a two-week ceasefire to negotiate a long-term peace agreement based on a “workable” 10-point proposal from Tehran.

Just hours after warning that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran refused to open the Strait of Hormuz, Trump reversed course following a direct appeal from Pakistani negotiators.

“Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump posted on his social media platform.

LIVE UPDATES: Iran claims victory as Trump announces two-week ceasefire

He described the move as a “double sided CEASEFIRE,” adding that the US has “already met and exceeded all Military objectives.”

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The president said Iran’s 10-point proposal offers a “workable basis on which to negotiate,” with most points of past contention already agreed upon.

Trump warned, however, that the Iranian proposal is not good enough in its current form, and that he would order devastating new airstrikes if no final deal is reached by the new deadline.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has announced that negotiations with the United States will begin on Friday, April 10, in Islamabad, allocating a two‑week period that may be extended by mutual agreement.

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The Council declared a “historic and crushing defeat” for the US, claiming Washington has been forced to accept Tehran’s 10‑point plan as the basis for talks. The plan allegedly includes US commitments to non‑aggression, Iran’s continued control over the Strait of Hormuz, acceptance of uranium enrichment, the lifting of all sanctions, termination of UN Security Council and IAEA resolutions, payment of war reparations, withdrawal of US combat forces from the region, and a halt to the war on all fronts, including against the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon.

The Council stressed that national unity must be preserved and that these negotiations are “an extension of the battlefield.” It warned that if the enemy’s surrender on the battlefield does not translate into a political achievement, “we will fight side by side on the battlefield until all the demands of the Iranian nation are met.”