Trump Says Iran Ceasefire Proposal Not Good Enough
Citing US, Israeli, and regional sources, the report said chances of reaching even a partial deal within the next 48 hours remain slim
WASHINGTON, United States: US President Donald Trump said Monday that a proposed 45-day ceasefire with Iran was a "very significant step" but "not good enough" for him to sign, as Iranian officials vowed to keep fighting.
Talk of a ceasefire came as the US and Israel struck targets across Iran, including major petrochemical facilities, while time ticked down to Trump's Tuesday deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face attacks on its civilian infrastructure.
Meanwhile Iran continued missile and drone attacks around the region.
Trump said intermediaries between the US and Iran "are negotiating now" on improving the ceasefire proposal, which US media reported was being mediated by Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey.
"It's not good enough, but it's a very significant step," he told reporters at the White House.
Trump added that he would still go through with his threat against civilian targets if a deal is not reached.
Iran's IRNA state news agency said Tehran "has rejected a ceasefire and insists on the need for a definitive end to the conflict" in a message relayed to America via Pakistan.
Neither Trump nor IRNA named any specifics of the proposed ceasefire.
Iran's military would "continue the war as long as the political authorities see fit", army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia told the ISNA news agency. — AFP
Tehran Rejects Latest Ceasefire
TEHRAN: Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency says Tehran has rejected the latest ceasefire proposal and wants a permanent end to the war.
The report comes shortly before U.S. President Donald Trump’s deadline for Tehran to open the Strait of Hormuz or see its power plants and bridges attacked.
The news agency said Iran had conveyed its response to the U.S. through Pakistan.
“We won’t merely accept a ceasefire,” Mojtaba Ferdousi Pour, head of the Iranian diplomatic mission in Cairo, told The Associated Press on Monday. “We only accept an end of the war with guarantees that we won’t be attacked again.”
On the Strait of Hormuz, Ferdousi Pour said Iranian and Omani officials were working on a mechanism for administrating the shipping chokepoint.
Israel Says It Killed The Head Of Intelligence For Iran’s Revolutionary Guard
The head of intelligence for Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi, was killed, according to Iranian state media. Israel claimed the killing Monday. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said: “Iran’s leaders live with a sense of being targeted. We will continue to hunt them down one by one.”
Israel and the United States carried out a wave of attacks on Iran on Monday, killing more than 25 people. Iran responded with missile fire on Israel and its Gulf Arab neighbors.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz loomed. Trump gave Tehran a deadline that expires Monday night Washington time, saying if no deal was reached to reopen the strait, the U.S. would hit Iran’s power plants and other infrastructure targets and set the country “back to the stone ages.” Following Trump’s expletive-laced threat on Easter Sunday, Iran’s parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf called the threats of targeting Iran’s infrastructure “reckless.”
US, Iran Discuss 45-Day Ceasefire: Report
With a deadline set by US President Donald Trump fast approaching, the US, Iran, and regional mediators are discussing terms for a possible 45-day ceasefire that could eventually lead to a permanent end to the war, according to Axios.
Citing US, Israeli, and regional sources, the report said chances of reaching even a partial deal within the next 48 hours remain slim. Mediators have warned Iranian officials that time is running out and that this window represents the last opportunity to avoid large-scale destruction.
These urgent negotiations come amid fears of a major escalation, including potential US-Israeli strikes on Iran’s civilian infrastructure and possible retaliatory attacks on energy and water facilities in Gulf countries.
The original 10-day deadline given to Iran was set to expire Monday evening but was extended by 20 hours, with a new deadline of Tuesday at 8 pm ET announced by Trump on Truth Social. Sources say plans for a large-scale bombing campaign targeting Iran’s energy facilities are ready, though the extension aims to allow one final chance for diplomacy.
Negotiations are being conducted through mediators from Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey, along with direct message exchanges between US envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. However, Iran has not accepted any of the proposals put forward so far.
The proposed deal involves two phases. The first would be a 45-day ceasefire, during which further negotiations toward a permanent resolution would take place. This ceasefire could be extended if needed.
The second phase would focus on ending the war completely. Key issues include reopening the Strait of Hormuz and addressing Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, either through removal or dilution.
Iran considers these issues major bargaining chips and is unlikely to fully concede them in exchange for only a temporary ceasefire. Mediators are exploring whether Iran can take partial steps during the initial phase while also seeking assurances from the US that the ceasefire will lead to a lasting peace.
Iranian officials have emphasized they do not want a situation similar to Gaza or Lebanon, where ceasefires exist on paper but are frequently broken. Mediators are also working on confidence-building measures from Washington to address Iran’s concerns.
The White House has declined to comment on the negotiations. Meanwhile, regional mediators remain concerned that any military escalation could severely impact Gulf nations’ critical infrastructure.
Amid the rising tensions, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy stated that conditions in the Strait of Hormuz will “never return” to their previous state, particularly for the US and Israel.
Airstrike in Irani City of Eslamshar Kills At Least 13
An airstrike early Monday struck a residential building in a city southwest of Iran’s capital, Tehran, killing at least 13 people, Iranian media reported.
The semiofficial Fars news agency and Nour News reported the strike near Eslamshar.
It wasn’t clear why the building had been struck.
Neither Israel nor the United States claimed the strikes early Monday, but they came after Trump issued a profanity-laced threat to Iran that it must reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Airstrike in Irani City of Qom Kills At Least 5
The state-run IRAN daily newspaper said in an online message that an airstrike in a residential area of Qom killed at least five people. Qom is a holy Shiite seminary city just south of Tehran.
It wasn’t unclear what the target of the strike was.
Iran has not provided overall casualty figures from the war in days. It also hasn’t discussed its materiel losses.
Live Updates
- 7 April 2026 12:27 AM IST
Trump promises strikes on Iran's civilian infrastructure if Tehran doesn't capitulate by 8 pm Eastern time Tuesday
Trump promises strikes on Iran's civilian infrastructure if Tehran doesn't capitulate by 8 pm Eastern time Tuesday, reports AP
- 6 April 2026 11:32 PM IST
Hegseth describes ‘unblinking’ mission in coordination call
The defense secretary said the coordination call held by national security officials during the daring mission to rescue the U.S. airmen lasted nearly two days straight.
“For 45 hours and 56 minutes, we held that call open for coordination,” Hegseth said, describing the call that was held in a secure facility. “Our mission was unblinking.”
Hegseth continued, “the meeting never stopped. The planning never ceased.” — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:31 PM IST
CIA Director John Ratcliffe says top-secret technology led to rescue of downed airman
Speaking at a White House press conference, Ratcliffe said the agency used “exquisite technologies that no other intelligence service” possesses to locate the aviator after the F-15 was shot down in Iran.
At the same time, the CIA mounted a deception operation to mislead Iranians who were looking.
Ratcliffe said the search and rescue operation was “comparable to hunting for a single grain of sand in the middle of a desert.”
The CIA declined to respond to questions Monday about the kind of technology used to locate the airman. — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:28 PM IST
Trump threatens to jail journalist who first reported on downed airman
Trump threatened to jail the journalist who first reported that U.S. forces were searching for an F-15 weapons officer shot down in Iran, if they don’t reveal their sources.
“The person that did the story will go to jail if he doesn’t say, and that doesn’t last long,” Trump said.
Trump didn’t name the journalist or news organization. He said the leak tipped off the Iranians, endangering the officer and his rescuers. He called the leaker “a sick person.” — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:27 PM IST
Iran’s supreme leader issues a rare public statement
Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei expressed condolences over the killing of the Revolutionary Guard’s intelligence chief.
In a written social media post, Khamenei said Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi joined a “steadfast line of warriors and fighters” to sacrifice their lives. Israeli strikes have killed dozens of top Iranian leaders, including Khamenei’s father.
The younger Khamenei has not been seen or spoken in public since he succeeded his father as supreme leader. — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:26 PM IST
Trump offers more details of dramatic airman rescue
The president described the scale of the operation undertaken by the U.S. to rescue the second airman from the downed aircraft — which included 155 aircraft.
More specifically, it included four bombers, 64 fighters, 48 refueling tankers, 13 rescue aircraft, among others, Trump said.
Much of it was an effort to throw off the Iranians who were also looking for the missing crew member, the president said.
“We were bringing them all over and a lot of it was subterfuge,” Trump said. “We wanted to have them think he was in a different location.” — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:25 PM IST
Trump says downed officer rushed to get away from crash site
Trump says the downed weapons officer followed his training to get as far away from the crash site as possible.
When a plane crashes in hostile territory, “they all head right to that site, you want to be as far away as you can,” Trump said.
Trump says the officer was “bleeding profusely” but was able climb mountainous terrain and contact U.S. forces to communicate his location. Rescuers mobilized a massive response that included subterfuge to confuse the Iranians about where they were looking. — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:24 PM IST
Trump says 21 aircraft came to help rescue airmen who crash in Iran
The president began describing the rescue efforts from Friday and over the weekend after two airmen ejected and landed alive “deep in enemy territory” in Iran.
Trump said 21 aircraft were deployed to help with the search and rescue in the first wave, flying for hours under “very, very heavy enemy fire.” He said the U.S. has one helicopter with many bullets in it. — AP
- 6 April 2026 11:03 PM IST
Donald Trump shares more details on dramatic airman rescue
The president described the scale of the operation undertaken by the U.S. to rescue the second airman from the downed aircraft — which included 155 aircraft.
More specifically, it included four bombers, 64 fighters, 48 refueling tankers, 13 rescue aircraft, among others, Trump said.Much of it was an effort to throw off the Iranians who were also looking for the missing crew member, the president said. - 6 April 2026 10:43 PM IST
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says Turkey has stepped up efforts to end the war
“We are striving to seize any chance, however small, for hostilities to cease and negotiations to open,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised address following a Cabinet meeting. He did not provide details.
Erdogan, a vocal critic of Israel, again accused the country of undermining all attempts to stop the fighting.
