President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire with Iran “over” Wednesday, hours after U.S. forces struck more than 80 targets in Iran and Tehran fired back at American bases in Bahrain and Kuwait.
Trump spoke to reporters at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, seated beside Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
“To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore. They’re scum… They’re led by sick people… As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them.” — President Donald Trump
Trump said negotiators could keep talking but held out little hope. “They have to come back to me. As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them.”
Trump linked the strikes to Iranian attacks on ships during the funeral of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the opening attack of the war on Feb. 28.
“We attacked, very powerfully last night, the very dangerous people from Iran,” Trump said. “We say, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’ and instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships yesterday. So we hit them very hard last night.”
CENTCOM cites shipping attacks
U.S. Central Command said Tuesday it launched a “series of powerful strikes” against Iran after Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
CENTCOM said the strikes were meant “to impose heavy costs” for targeting commercial shipping crewed by civilians in an international waterway. It called Iran’s actions unwarranted, dangerous and a clear violation of the ceasefire.
The command said its forces hit more than 80 targets. Those included air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities and over 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats.
The three vessels struck were the Marshall Islands-flagged Al Rekayyat, the Saudi-flagged Wedyan and the Liberian-flagged Cyprus Prosperity. Maritime authorities raised the strait’s threat level from “substantial” to “severe.”
The strikes came hours after Washington revoked a Treasury license authorizing the sale of Iranian oil, a concession granted last month under the interim deal.
Iran claims US violations
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard confirmed retaliatory strikes on military sites in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, and Kuwait, where U.S. Army personnel are based. Both countries sounded missile alerts early Wednesday.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs,Kazem Gharibabadi , said the U.S. operations violate Articles 1 and 2 of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, and that the oil waiver revocation violated Article 10. He said Washington had breached the memorandum several times over three weeks, citing Israeli actions in Lebanon and threats against Iran.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who led Iran’s negotiating team, listed what he called major violations: interference with Iranian adjustments in the strait, persistent threats of further strikes, reinstating oil sanctions, attacks on southern Iran and continued Zionist aggression on Lebanon.
“The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.” — Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s Parliament Speaker
A fragile deal
The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, signed June 17, formalized the process of ending the war and set a 60-day window to negotiate a final agreement on Iran’s disputed nuclear program.
The deal secures toll-free passage through the Strait of Hormuz for 60 days and leaves Iran and Oman, with other Gulf states, to define future administration of the waterway. Iran has since demanded that ships seek permission to transit and raised the prospect of transit charges. It also claimed only it may clear mines in the strait, after Oman agreed to work with Britain and France to keep the route open.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte backed the response. “I think what you did last night was absolutely necessary. It was a very strong response,” he told Trump.
Trump said he would let negotiators continue, but his declaration left a permanent deal in doubt. Talks had been due to resume after Khamenei’s burial concludes Thursday.
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