US and Iran halt strikes, head to Doha to save their 11-day-old peace deal from collapse
Both countries have agreed to suspend all "kinetic activity" while technical negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz continue
- Jun 29, 2026,
- Updated Jun 29, 2026 7:35 AM IST
Eleven days after the United States and Iran announced an interim agreement to end months of conflict, the deal is already fighting for its life. Both sides exchanged fresh strikes over the weekend, traded accusations of ceasefire violations, and pushed the diplomatic breakthrough to the edge of collapse. Now, with the fragile agreement hanging in the balance, Washington and Tehran have agreed to halt all military operations and will meet in Doha on Tuesday in a final attempt to pull the deal back from the brink.
Both countries have agreed to suspend all "kinetic activity" while technical negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz continue, according to an Axios report. Senior US officials confirmed the decision. "We decided to stop all the kinetic activity," one US official told Axios. A second official said both sides would stand down "for now" and added that "vessels can move freely" while discussions proceed.
The meeting was originally planned for Switzerland as part of broader nuclear negotiations, but after the weekend's military exchanges, diplomats shifted the venue to Doha and narrowed the immediate agenda to the single most polemical issue: the Strait of Hormuz. Nick Stewart, who heads the US technical team, is expected to participate. The White House has not publicly commented on the planned talks.
How the ceasefire unravelled so quickly
The memorandum of understanding, signed barely 11 days ago, was premised on a clear exchange: Iran would use its best efforts to ensure safe commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz; the United States would lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Negotiators meeting in Switzerland last week also agreed to establish a direct military hotline between US forces and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to coordinate maritime traffic through the strait. By the weekend, that hotline still had not become operational.
At the same time, Tehran began insisting that vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz coordinate directly with Iranian authorities, a position Washington believes goes beyond what was agreed during the original negotiations. Those competing interpretations quickly became the trigger for a new round of strikes.
The weekend that almost ended the deal
Iran launched missiles and drones at US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain. Washington responded with strikes on Iranian missile and drone infrastructure, coastal radar installations, and other military assets, citing Iranian attacks on commercial shipping.
"Iran was given a chance to honor the ceasefire agreement but elected not to," US Central Command said, adding that the strikes were carried out "in direct response to continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping."
Iran flatly rejected that account, accusing Washington of violating the agreement. The IRGC said its retaliatory strikes on US bases were a direct response to American aggression and warned they would halt diplomatic efforts if violations continued. Kuwait said its air defences intercepted two ballistic missiles; Bahrain reported limited damage to a residential building but no casualties. A US official said there were no American casualties or major damage to military facilities.
Eleven days after the United States and Iran announced an interim agreement to end months of conflict, the deal is already fighting for its life. Both sides exchanged fresh strikes over the weekend, traded accusations of ceasefire violations, and pushed the diplomatic breakthrough to the edge of collapse. Now, with the fragile agreement hanging in the balance, Washington and Tehran have agreed to halt all military operations and will meet in Doha on Tuesday in a final attempt to pull the deal back from the brink.
Both countries have agreed to suspend all "kinetic activity" while technical negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz continue, according to an Axios report. Senior US officials confirmed the decision. "We decided to stop all the kinetic activity," one US official told Axios. A second official said both sides would stand down "for now" and added that "vessels can move freely" while discussions proceed.
The meeting was originally planned for Switzerland as part of broader nuclear negotiations, but after the weekend's military exchanges, diplomats shifted the venue to Doha and narrowed the immediate agenda to the single most polemical issue: the Strait of Hormuz. Nick Stewart, who heads the US technical team, is expected to participate. The White House has not publicly commented on the planned talks.
How the ceasefire unravelled so quickly
The memorandum of understanding, signed barely 11 days ago, was premised on a clear exchange: Iran would use its best efforts to ensure safe commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz; the United States would lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Negotiators meeting in Switzerland last week also agreed to establish a direct military hotline between US forces and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to coordinate maritime traffic through the strait. By the weekend, that hotline still had not become operational.
At the same time, Tehran began insisting that vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz coordinate directly with Iranian authorities, a position Washington believes goes beyond what was agreed during the original negotiations. Those competing interpretations quickly became the trigger for a new round of strikes.
The weekend that almost ended the deal
Iran launched missiles and drones at US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain. Washington responded with strikes on Iranian missile and drone infrastructure, coastal radar installations, and other military assets, citing Iranian attacks on commercial shipping.
"Iran was given a chance to honor the ceasefire agreement but elected not to," US Central Command said, adding that the strikes were carried out "in direct response to continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping."
Iran flatly rejected that account, accusing Washington of violating the agreement. The IRGC said its retaliatory strikes on US bases were a direct response to American aggression and warned they would halt diplomatic efforts if violations continued. Kuwait said its air defences intercepted two ballistic missiles; Bahrain reported limited damage to a residential building but no casualties. A US official said there were no American casualties or major damage to military facilities.