After almost four months of warfare, the president ordered the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of the U.S. naval blockade

NEED TO KNOW

• President Donald Trump announced on June 14 that the Iran peace deal “is now complete” 
• In a Truth Social post, the president ordered the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of the U.S. naval blockade
• The war began on Feb. 28, when the U.S. and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, a “massive” military action based primarily on claims that Iran was rebuilding their nuclear program

The Iran peace deal is complete, according to President Donald Trump.

In a Truth Social post on Sunday, June 14, the president wrote, "The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all!"

"I hereby fully authorize the toll-free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade," his post continued. "Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow! President DONALD J. TRUMP."

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed the news in a post on X, writing that military operations “on all fronts, including in Lebanon,” have been terminated. He added that the deal will officially be signed on Friday, June 19, in Switzerland.

The war began on Feb. 28, when the U.S. and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, a “massive” military action based primarily on claims that Iran was rebuilding their nuclear program.

As of June 10, Al Jazeera estimated that 3,468 killed and more than 26,500 injured in Iran alone, though casualties also occurred in all six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — where Iran launched retaliatory strikes.

In recent weeks, Trump repeatedly promised that a peace deal was imminent. However, he also told CNBC's Eamon Javers on June 1 that he felt the negotiations were starting “to get very boring” and “I don’t care if they’re over, honestly.”

“I really don’t care. I couldn’t care less,” he said in a phone interview. “If they’re over, they’re over. If they’re not, you know, I think they took too much time. Frankly, I thought they started to get very boring."

The president also expressed frustration with frequent questions from White House press about the war's effect on gas prices and the worldwide energy supply.

“I think the oil will be dropping like a rock in the very near, you know, the very near distance,” he told CNBC earlier this month. “Once you explain that this is all about Iran having a nuclear weapon, people are willing to pay a little bit more.”

When pressed on the peace deal timeline, Trump has repeatedly reiterated that the goal of Operation Epic Fury was to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

“The thing I care about most at this point in life is that Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” he told CNBC earlier this month. “And if they want to try and have a new nuclear weapon, I will blow them up to kingdom come.”

However, Trump's Truth Social post announcing the peace deal made no mention of Iran's nuclear weapons. CNN reported on Sunday that Trump's announcement is "not a long-term nuclear deal, but rather an agreement to halt the war," and that "A longer-term deal to contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions will likely still have to be negotiated."

Trump's claim of a completed peace deal comes after weeks of issuing ultimatums to Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz.

A particularly threatening post on Easter Sunday saw the president warning, on Easter Sunday, saying, "Open the F—in’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah."

He followed that up with an April 6 press conference in which he elaborated on the military’s plans to destroy Iran’s infrastructure. 

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

“Because of the power of our military, every bridge in Iran will be decimated, every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again,” he told the press room, adding, “I hope I don’t have to do it.”

After setting a deadline for 8 p.m. the following evening, Trump posted another threat: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again,” he wrote on Truth Social. “I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.”

It seems the threats did not fall on deaf ears, as Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, touted the country's retaliatory attacks while confirming the deal. CNN reported that Gharibabadi said the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran was “not solely the product of diplomatic efforts,” but also what he described as Iran’s “military achievements.”

Source link