Washington, United States. The United States and Iran have reached an agreement to extend their ceasefire by 60 days and lift restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, sources told Reuters on Thursday. President Donald Trump has yet to approve the deal, and Iranian state media said the text had not been finalised.
Ceasefire terms
Four sources familiar with the matter said the agreement would extend the truce and allow traffic to resume through the strategic waterway while negotiators work on more difficult issues, including Iran’s nuclear programme. It would also require the United States to lift its blockade of Iranian ports and ease some sanctions on Iranian oil sales.
US Vice President JD Vance told reporters in Washington that talks were continuing. “We’re not there yet, but we’re very close and we’re going to keep on working at it,” he said. “I can’t guarantee that we’re going to get there, but right now I feel pretty good about it.”
Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said the text had not been finalised or confirmed. Tehran has not commented publicly on the reported deal.
Market reaction
News of the possible agreement, first reported by Axios, sent oil prices lower on hopes that the strait could reopen. Before the war began on 28 February, roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply passed through the waterway.
If approved by both leaderships, the deal would mark the most significant step toward peace since the conflict began, which has killed thousands and disrupted global energy markets. The Trump administration has repeatedly said a deal was close, only for Iran to dispute or downplay those claims.
Fresh strikes
The reports came after a new round of tit-for-tat strikes. US Central Command said its forces shot down five Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in Bandar Abbas that was preparing to launch a sixth.
Kuwaiti forces intercepted a ballistic missile fired toward the country, which hosts a large US military base. Kuwait condemned the attack and called on Iran to immediately halt what it described as a serious escalation.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted the US base responsible for the Bandar Abbas strike, warning that any repeat would prompt a “more decisive response,” according to Tasnim. A US official said the strikes were defensive and intended to maintain the ceasefire. The United States also denied an Iranian state television report that a US aircraft had been shot down near Bushehr.
Regional conflict
The violence, the second flare-up this week, coincided with the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which was being observed across a region where several countries have been drawn into the conflict.
Iran has said any peace deal must also end the campaign by US ally Israel in Lebanon, where fighting continues. Israel said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in the southern city of Tyre and carried out an attack in Beirut.
The Lebanese army said one of its soldiers was killed in a strike. Israel has displaced hundreds of thousands of people in its push deep into Lebanon in pursuit of the Iran-backed armed group.
