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Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Minutes before the deadline, Trump blinks

Donald Trump announced Tuesday evening that hostilities between the U.S. and Iran would cease for two weeks as negotiations continue around Iran's nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz.

In a shocking step back from the brink, the U.S. president and Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that shipping traffic would resume through the strait and all hostilities between the two countries would temporarily cease.

The moment capped off a day that began with Trump threatening to end Iran's entire "civilization" in a startling threat that drew immediate calls for impeachment or invocation of the 25th amendment by Democrats in Congress.

For days, Trump has issued increasingly bizarre warnings to Tehran concerning the strait, through which about 20 percent of the globe's oil traffic travels.

But it was his warning that "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again," which caused fear and alarm that the war was entering a new, horrific stage.

The president’s critics immediately took the U-turn as evidence that Trump was bluffing once again.

"He's not telling the truth. But if you accept even part of the Iranian statement, Donald Trump has agreed to give Iran control of the Strait of Hormuz. That is extraordinary and cataclysmic for the world,” Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, said on CNN.

Follow The Independent's live coverage here.

By John Bowden

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Daily briefing

Trump announces suspension of attacks on Iran for two weeks subject to safe opening of Strait of Hormuz

The president said that a 'double sided ceasefire' was in effect just minutes before his 8 p.m. deadline was due to hit, writes John Bowden. Now, can he find an off ramp?

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

Time will tell.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of the Iran war's biggest backers in DC, on whether a proposal to end the conflict permanently would be acceptable to him.

What else you need to know

Haberman horror: The White House is reportedly bracing for the release of a deeply-reported book from New York Times Trump whisperer Maggie Haberman, due to come out in June. Grag Graziosi has more on how the West Wing is panicking about her forthcoming revelations about the inner workings of Trumpworld in government.
Bye, Pam: Pamela Bondi wrote last week that she would remain on for another month to guide her no. 2, Todd Blanche, through the transition process as he ascends to the role of acting attorney general in the weeks to come. Instead, she appears to have been forced out of the job practically overnight. John Bowden has the story.

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