Live Updates: Iran and Israel Pull Back After Exchange of Attacks
"Iran signaled that it had concluded its latest strikes against Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refrained from another attack under pressure from President Trump, a U.S. and two Israeli officials said."Iran and Israel signaled on Monday that they were ready to wind down an overnight military escalation that briefly shattered a fragile two-month cease-fire and brought the Middle East back to the precipice of full-blown war.
President Trump called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday morning and asked him to back off on new strikes on Iran, according to a senior U.S. and two Israeli officials, who were granted anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the call publicly. In a recorded message issued on Monday, Mr. Netanyahu said that Israel’s “fire is on hold” against Iran.
In remarks carried by Iranian state television on Monday afternoon, Iran’s military said that it was ceasing its attacks for now. But it warned that if Israel resumed its own strikes, including in southern Lebanon which Israel has been militarily occupying for weeks, “much harsher and more forceful actions than before will follow.”
The rapid escalation in fighting began with Israeli strikes just outside of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Sunday, which the Israeli military said targeted the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah. Iran retaliated by sending waves of ballistic missiles toward Israel. The Israeli military said on Monday morning that it had launched two waves of airstrikes across Iran, including against the country’s largest petrochemical complex, prompting further Iranian missile attacks on central Israel.
In his recorded statement, his first public comment in the 20 hours since Iran began firing missiles at Israel, Mr. Netanyahu said that Iran had tried to “force a new equation” by attacking Israel in retaliation for its attacks in Lebanon. “This equation is unbearable, and unacceptable to me,” he said.
Mr. Trump on Monday publicly called on both countries to “immediately stop” the attacks. He also promised that a final deal to end the war in the Middle East was on the way, although the president’s predictions of an agreement with Iran have frequently failed to materialize.
Here’s what else to know:
Energy markets: The price of oil jumped after Israel and Iran exchanged strikes, but pared back much of those gains. Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, was almost 2 percent higher to about $95 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. marker, was up around 2 percent to around $92 a barrel. Read more ›
Yemen: The Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen fired a ballistic missile at central Israel on Monday and announced a naval blockade against Israel in the Red Sea, although it was unclear what that threat would mean in practice. Earlier Houthi attacks in the Red Sea snarled global shipping and prompted a U.S.-led bombing campaign.
Casualties: The attacks caused no casualties in Israel, according to the local authorities. Iran’s emergency services said that the strikes had injured 15 people, one of whom remained hospitalized, without providing details, according to a statement carried by state media.
Israeli politics: For Mr. Netanyahu, a resumption of fighting with Iran may offer some short-term advantages at home, though it could also further inflame regional tensions.""
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