Article #281625

US president abandons threat for Iran to surrender or face destruction with last-minute intervention led by Pakistan

• Middle East crisis – live updates

• Iran war ceasefire announcement – what we know so far

• Explainer: What is in Iran’s 10-point ceasefire plan and will the US agree to it?

The US and Iran agreed to a two-week conditional ceasefire on Tuesday evening, which included a temporary reopening of the strait of Hormuz, after a last-minute diplomatic intervention led by Pakistan, canceling an ultimatum from Donald Trump for Iran to surrender or face widespread destruction.

Trump’s announcement of the ceasefire agreement came less than two hours before the US president’s self-imposed 8pm Eastern time deadline to bomb Iran’s power plants and bridges in a move that legal scholars, as well as officials from numerous countries and the pope, had warned could constitute war crimes.