US and Iran reach agreement to end war

The United States and Iran have reached an agreement to end the war, US President Donald Trump and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced tonight.

“The deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform around 17:30 p.m. local time in Washington on Sunday, shortly after Sharif announced the agreement early Monday local time in Pakistan, which he served as a mediator.

The precise terms of the agreement were not immediately known. Sharif said in a post on the X network that the agreement provides for "an immediate and permanent cessation of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon."

Trump said the Strait of Hormuz, a key sea passage for global energy supplies that Iran has effectively closed for months, would be reopened "without tolls," and that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would be lifted.

"Ships of the world, start your engines. Let the oil flow again!" Trump wrote.

The agreement will be officially signed on Friday in Switzerland, Sharif wrote.

Multiple sources previously told Reuters that the draft agreement envisions the reopening of the strait, the lifting of the US naval blockade and the extension of the ceasefire, while the issue of Iran's nuclear program would be discussed during an additional 60 days of negotiations.

Tasnim news agency reported, citing a well-informed source, that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened to maritime traffic on Friday, following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the parties.

Thousands of people have been killed, mostly in Iran and Lebanon, since US and Israeli forces first attacked Iran on February 28. Iran has retaliated with attacks on Israel and Gulf states that host US military bases, and has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, sending global energy prices soaring. In response, US forces have blockaded Iranian ports.

Israel said it was not a party to the planned US-Iran deal.

War with Iran has become a political burden for Trump and his Republican allies in Congress, while polls show Americans are deeply dissatisfied with rising fuel prices ahead of the November midterm elections, which will decide who controls Congress.

The agreement was reached despite Israel's attack on Lebanon on Sunday, which was criticized by both Iran and Trump.

A senior Iranian official previously told Reuters that under the terms of the draft agreement, the United States would agree to release $25 billion in frozen Iranian assets, while Iran would agree not to produce or acquire nuclear weapons. The official said Iran had agreed to maintain the status quo on its nuclear program, including a ban on uranium enrichment and expansion of nuclear facilities, until a final agreement is reached.

A US official, speaking before the deal was announced, said the agreement would ultimately lead to the complete dismantling of Iran's nuclear program, with its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium destroyed and removed from the country. A senior Iranian official said the draft agreement would allow Iran, which denies seeking to develop a nuclear bomb, to dilute its enriched uranium domestically.

Qatari negotiators arrived in Tehran on Sunday morning as part of efforts to finalize the agreement, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.

At pro-government rallies across Iran on Saturday night, residents and news agencies reported that hardliners opposed to the framework agreement were vocal in their displeasure.

A resident of the northeastern city of Mashhad told Reuters that some protesters chanted: "Death to those who compromise," which is believed to be an allusion to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.