Just hours after President Trump implored both Israel and Iran to honor a “complete and total ceasefire,” Tehran’s forces launched a fresh missile barrage at southern Israel, underscoring the fragility of the truce brokered by Washington and Qatar. According to the Associated Press, Israel’s Iron Dome intercepted multiple rockets over Beersheba, leaving at least two civilians lightly injured in the border town.
@ReutersLive “Israel confirms new missile launches from Iran just three hours after Trump’s ceasefire announcement.” view on X
Trump’s announcement came in a Truth Social post—“THE CEASEFIRE IS NOW IN EFFECT. PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!”—following intensive shuttle diplomacy in Doha and Washington. Yet, as Reuters notes, Iran never formally agreed to Trump’s terms, and its proxies in Syria and Iraq resumed rocket fire within the same afternoon reports Reuters.
@Reuters “Israeli Defence Minister Katz orders strikes on Tehran after Iran violates ceasefire.” view on X
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz declared in a televised briefing that “any violation of this truce will be met with overwhelming force,” and ordered precision airstrikes against suspected missile depots in central Iran. The Israeli Air Force later released footage of F-16s returning to base, asserting that “we have demonstrated our resolve,” a statement carried by BBC News.
International reaction was swift. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called an emergency Security Council session, urging “all parties to step back from the brink.” In his official release on the UN News Centre, Guterres warned that “without a clear, written agreement, any verbal ceasefire is nothing more than a pause between battles.”
@UN “Words alone will not protect civilians. We need verifiable, enforceable ceasefire terms now.” view on X
Meanwhile, Qatar’s Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani lamented on Al Jazeera Live that “the absence of a written accord has allowed spoilers to reignite hostilities.” He appealed for both sides to return to the negotiating table in Doha immediately.
On Capitol Hill, Senate Foreign Relations Chair Bob Menendez (D-NJ) criticized the White House’s handling. “Tweeting a ceasefire without paperwork is reckless,” he told Politico. “We need transparency: what exactly did Iran agree to?”
@SenatorMenendez “Ceasefires must be negotiated, not declared. America’s credibility is on the line.” view on X
In Tehran, government spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh maintained on IRNA that Iran’s initial missile launches were “a defensive response” to Israeli raids on Khan Younis, and that “our forces will hold fire only when Israeli aggression ceases unconditionally.”
Oil markets reacted to the breakdown. Brent crude jumped 4% to $92 per barrel, according to Bloomberg, tracking fears of wider warfare and supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
@markets “Oil spikes on renewed Middle East tensions—Brent tops $90 as ceasefire collapses.” view on X
Humanitarian agencies also sounded alarms. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that “civilians remain caught in the crossfire,” with Gaza hospitals already overwhelmed after previous Israeli operations. In an OCHA bulletin, they urged immediate establishment of safe corridors under UN supervision OCHA bulletin.
Regional powers are scrambling for damage control. Turkey’s President Erdoğan offered to host fresh talks in Ankara, while Russia’s Foreign Minister Lavrov proposed a joint monitoring mechanism under the auspices of the OSCE, as detailed in a RT interview.
Security analysts fear this latest breach could derail months of covert diplomacy aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear accord. The Institute for Science and International Security warns that “without sustained confidence-building, both sides risk slipping back into open conflict,” per their recent report.
For now, Israel has declared a heightened alert along its northern and southern borders, and U.S. forces in Iraq have raised their readiness levels. CENTCOM’s official release confirmed that Patriot batteries and F-15s remain on standby to protect American installations.
As the smoke clears from rockets and counterstrikes, one lesson emerges: in today’s era of instant announcements, ceasefires must be more than words—they must be anchored in enforceable, mutually agreed terms. Otherwise, as today’s events show, peace can vanish almost as quickly as it was declared.
