Trump is already casting Iran's retaliation as a sign of peace. It offers both sides an ‘off ramp'
Iran's missile attack on a US air base in Qatar was telegraphed well in advance, suggesting Tehran intended a symbolic show of force while offering a way to de-escalate after US airstrikes over the weekend.
In a social media post on Monday afternoon, US President Donald Trump called the strike a 'very weak response' and thanked Iran 'for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured.'
'Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same' Trump said. 'IT'S TIME FOR PEACE,' he added in a subsequent post.
Oil prices slumped in the wake of Iran's attack on the US base, with West Texas Intermediate plummeting by more than 6 per cent to trade below $70 a barrel. That reflected investor sentiment that the Iranian strikes were less severe than feared and supplies from the Middle East won't be disrupted.
The assault, which involved short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, early on Tuesday AEST targeted the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which officials said had been largely evacuated.
Loading
Iran's Supreme National Security Council said the number of missiles fired matched the number of bombs dropped by the US on the Islamic Republic days before and the strike 'poses no danger' to Qatar, which it called 'our friendly and brotherly country'.
One official with knowledge of Western intelligence assessments said the attack was a typical example of an 'off-ramp' escalation and warned it was more difficult to understand whether – and at what point – Israel would stop its own military activities in the region. There was no immediate response from Israel to Trump's posts late Monday.
'It feels choreographed and intentional,' said Jonathan Panikoff, a former deputy national intelligence officer for the Near East. 'The Iranians get to tell their population they struck a mighty blow against the US, even if they didn't, and Trump has the room now to decide not to retaliate.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
SBS Australia
12 minutes ago
- SBS Australia
SBS News in Easy English 24 June 2025
Welcome to SBS News in Easy English, I'm Camille Bianchi. US President Donald Trump has announced that Israel and Iran have agreed to a ceasefire. On his own social media network, Truth Social, President Trump said 'It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a complete and total ceasefire'. Neither Iran nor Israel have confirmed Mr Trump's statement. Mr Trump has also said he is considering overthrowing the Iranian government. Reza Pahlavi says he is ready to take over from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as interim leader of Iran. "I am here today to submit myself to my compatriots to lead them down this road of peace and democratic transition. I do not seek political power but rather to help our great nation navigate through this critical hour toward stability, freedom and justice." More Australians are asking for help to leave the Middle East, with 2,900 in Iran and 1,300 in Israel. Foreign Minister Penny Wong says Australia has paused buses that were leaving from Israel, because of safety concerns. If airports re-open, some Australians may be able to leave either Israel or Iran on two planes sent from Australia. Senator Wong says there are no changes to the threat level for travellers. "There are always risks - not only from escalation in the region, but also potential risks more broadly. I have indicated publicly that I have asked my department to consider whether - if there is any alteration to travel advice more generally." The triple murder mushroom trial is expected to end this week, after nine weeks. The jury will go to consider whether accused killer Erin Paterson knew she was feeding three family members poisonous mushrooms. She denies knowing the mushrooms were poisonous and says it was a terrible accident. The story is world-famous and businesses in the town of Morwell, two hours east of Melbourne, says the trial has brought big business. Laura Heller and John Nicoll are local business owners. 'Even though it's not great circumstances, it has been very good for our community because it's brought people from outside the area into the area. As you probably know, people have been lining up, early mornings to try and get in the court room and things like that, so it's just been good that they've been able to come to our town and see what we have to offer. It has been pretty busy, lot of journalists and legal people staying here at the motel, so normally a quieter time of the year, it has been a bit of a boom." The biggest group of First Nations students from a single degree have graduated from Monash University in Melbourne. 17 students from more than 20 communities have earned a Master of Indigenous Business Leadership, including Kaley Nicholson. "There is nothing more self-determined or self-determining than having your own business. You make every decision; the success and failure of that business really rests on your shoulders. And so that's an incredibly daunting thing to think about, but also it's so freeing." +++
ABC News
25 minutes ago
- ABC News
Donald Trump's claiming success in the Middle East, but big questions linger
After America rained bunker-buster bombs on Iran's nuclear sites at the weekend, the big question was: How would Iran respond? The Islamic Republic promised heavy punishment. But with limited capabilities, few allies and incapacitated proxy fighters, there appeared to be few good options to deliver it. Less than 48 hours after the US strikes, we saw an Iranian response — a barrage of missiles fired at America's biggest base in the Middle East. According to Donald Trump, 14 missiles were launched at the Al Udeid base in Qatar, which ordinarily houses about 10,000 troops. Thirteen of the missiles were taken down by Qatari air defences, and one was allowed to fall out of the sky because it wasn't a threat. But the key detail is that Iran shared its attack plan before it acted on it, so the Qatari base could be cleared to prevent casualties. This meant the missile launch was more of a performance than an attack. No injuries, little damage. And the ball back in Trump's court. So then the big question became: How would Trump respond? He'd warned Iran against striking US bases. Tit-for-tat escalation was now a frightening possibility. "There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran," Trump had told Americans in his televised address on Saturday night. "Remember, there are many targets left." Would Trump follow through on his threat to strike those targets? Was this a sudden turning point towards a wider war? Trump's answer arrived, true to form, in a social media post. It was a "thank you" to Iran. "I want to thank Iran for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured," Trump wrote. "Perhaps Iran can now proceed to peace and harmony in the region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same." Trump had never shown an appetite for a bloody battle with Iran. He'd spent weeks pressing its leaders to accept a no-nukes deal to prevent conflict. And after the nuclear facility strikes, he pushed the message it was "mission accomplished" — that diplomacy may have failed, but the nuclear threat was "obliterated" and the US was achieving, as he liked to say, "peace through strength". Trump's initial round of social media posting suggested he was willing to take what's been described as an "off-ramp" away from worsening hostilities. The deliberately benign nature of the attack on the base in Qatar appeared designed to de-escalate. It meant the US could leave Iran and Israel to continue trading blows themselves, free of the pressure to strike back that would have been created by American casualties. But then came another social post: Trump said Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire. It would end what he had now named "the 12 day war". "Perhaps Iran can now proceed to peace and harmony in the region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same." His vice-president, JD Vance, told Fox News the deal must have been finalised while he was on his way to the cable network's Washington studios. Trump "was working the phones as I was on the way over here," Vance told the network, and declared it was "the beginning of something really big for peace in the Middle East". On the same channel a little later, Republican senator Katie Britt went even further. "Donald Trump is going to win the Nobel Peace Prize, no doubt," she said. "He has brought peace to a region that needed stability." But Israel wouldn't confirm the ceasefire agreement. Iran's foreign minister said there was no agreement, but that Iran would stop responding to Israeli aggression if Israel stopped the aggression. Just a couple of hours later, Israel said more missiles were being fired its way from Iran. Israelis sought shelter, but the national ambulance service later said several people had been killed. Around the same time, Trump was still celebrating on social media, predicting "love, peace, and prosperity" for both Israel and Iran. At the time of writing, it's not at all clear how concrete this agreement is. Even if the warring parties cease firing, the region's fate rests on some big unknowns. Trump, a frequent exaggerator, hasn't offered solid evidence to back his claim Iran's nuclear program is obliterated, and other officials have offered less certain assessments. Given all the forewarning before the bombings, there's also a high chance Iran's enriched uranium was moved away from the targeted facilities. The UN's nuclear watchdog says its whereabouts are unknown. Israel obviously won't be satisfied if it sees signs the enrichment program is revived. Then there's the ongoing assault on Gaza, where Israeli forces continue to kill Palestinians daily. In the past month, as the Iran-Israel war stole attention, hundreds of people in Gaza were apparently killed while seeking food from the new US-backed aid program. The official death toll in Gaza is approaching 56,000 — and may have even passed it. After an eventful day in the Middle East, America has been claiming some big wins. But there are also ongoing, devastating losses — and some big questions whose answers could easily change everything once again.
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Trump announces ‘complete and total' ceasefire between Israel and Iran
There was no immediate official comment from Israel. The Jerusalem Post reported Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a late-night cabinet meeting and instructed his cabinet not to comment publicly. He had said in a video message the previous day that Israel was 'very, very close' to achieving its objectives in Iran. Trump said the war could have gone on for years and destroyed the entire Middle East, 'but it didn't, and never will'. He later told NBC News he believed the ceasefire was 'unlimited' and would 'go forever'. He said he did not think Israel and Iran 'will ever be shooting at each other again.' Reuters reported that Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani had secured Tehran's agreement to the US ceasefire proposal during a call with Iranian officials held after the Iranian strikes on a US base in Qatar on Monday, citing an official briefed on the negotiations. The phone call came after Trump told Qatar's emir that Israel had agreed to the ceasefire and asked for Doha's help persuading Tehran to also agree to the ceasefire deal, the official said. Loading Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed Trump's announced ceasefire. 'We have consistently called for dialogue, diplomacy and de-escalation,' he said in a statement. Trump's ceasefire announcement came after Iran attacked America's Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in retaliation for the US's weekend strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities. The airbase hosts the Qatari, US and UK air forces, and the forward headquarters of US Central Command in the region. Trump described Iran's missile attack as a 'very weak response' which the US had anticipated, but thanked Iran for giving advance warning 'which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured'. He also said: 'Perhaps Iran can now proceed to peace and harmony in the region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same.' Trump gave the number of Iranian retaliatory missiles as 14, and said 13 were 'knocked down', with one other 'set free' as it was not heading in a threatening direction. 'Most importantly, they've gotten it all out of their 'system', and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE.' Qatar, however, said Iran had fired 19 missiles at the US air base and hit one, but caused no casualties. Qatar's Defence Ministry earlier said its defence systems intercepted the attack. While there was no harm to humans, air travel was disrupted by the incident. Qantas was among the airlines forced to divert planes away from Qatari airspace, which was closed shortly before Iran's missile attack. Iran fired the missiles at Al Udeid early on Tuesday AEST, the regime's first act of retaliation for the American bombardment of its nuclear facilities at the weekend. In a statement, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack was a response to 'the blatant military aggression by the criminal regime of the United States'. It described the operation as 'powerful and destructive', said Iran 'will never leave any aggression against its territorial integrity, sovereignty, or national security unanswered'. Built on a flat stretch of desert about 30 kilometres southwest of Qatar's capital, Doha, Al Ubdeid is one of the most significant American military assets in the region. The sprawling facility hosts thousands of US service members and served as a major staging ground for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. At the height of both, it housed some 10,000 US troops, but that number dropped to about 8000 as of 2022. Trump visited the base during his trip to Qatar last month, and spoke to troops. Last week, ahead of the US strikes on Iran's nuclear sites, many of the transport planes, fighter jets and drones typically on Al Udeid's tarmac dispersed. In a June 18 satellite photo taken by Planet Labs and analysed by The Associated Press, the airbase's tarmac had emptied. The US hit Iran's nuclear assets with 75 projectiles on the weekend, including 14 so-called 'bunker buster' bombs aimed at obliterating the country's ability to develop nuclear weapons - though the full extent of the damage is still uncertain. Iran said the number of missiles it fired on Tuesday matched the number of bombs dropped by the US, and that any future US attacks would also meet retaliation, in comments widely interpreted as an indication Tehran was not planning any further action at this stage. The statement from Iran's Supreme National Security Council also noted the attack on the US base took place away from populated areas and posed no threat to Qatar, 'our friendly and brotherly country'.
