THE NEW YORK TIMES: Israel said the cease-fire did not include Lebanon. It was unclear whether ship operators considered the Strait of Hormuz safe for transit, or if word of the deal had reached local Iranian commanders.
The United States and Iran announced a two-week cease-fire on Tuesday evening, shortly before President Trump’s deadline for Iran to unblock the Strait of Hormuz or to see its “whole civilization” destroyed.
But on Wednesday morning, it was unclear whether word of the nascent deal had reached Iranian local commanders, as fresh missile and drone attacks were reported across the Persian Gulf. And even though the news sent the international oil price benchmark down 15 percent, to $93 a barrel, it remained unclear whether ship operators considered the strait — a critical passage for the world’s oil and gas — safe for transit.
After Mr. Trump said on Tuesday night that he had agreed to the cease-fire proposed by Pakistan, a U.S. official said American military strikes against Iran had stopped. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said the country’s armed forces would “cease their defensive operation,” and that safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible for two weeks if it was coordinated with Iran’s military.
But early on Wednesday, emergency sirens in Israel warned of incoming Iranian ballistic missiles. Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates reported missile and drone attacks. Bahrain’s interior ministry sounded warning sirens and reported a fire started by an Iranian attack. Iranian local commanders are allowed to make their own strike decisions under a decentralized control system. Iran War Live Updates » | Francesca Regalado, Elian Peltier, Ephrat Livni and Farnaz Fassihi | Wednesday, April 8, 2026
