 "US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran on his Truth Social account. Picture illustration/Reuters")
United States President Donald Trump has announced that a “ceasefire” between Israel and Iran is “now in effect”. In a post on Truth Social, his social media website, on Tuesday (June 24), he urged both sides: “PLEASE DO NOT VIOLATE IT!”
Hours ago, the US president declared the ceasefire, saying it would begin at 12:00 am Eastern Time (9.30 am IST) for Iran, and 12 hours later for Israel. Following Trump’s post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that his government accepted a ceasefire with Iran. Iranian state media also reported that a ceasefire had been “imposed on the enemy”, without mentioning a precise time.
If you are someone who does not regularly follow the news, browsing through Trump’s Truth Social account will give you some idea of what has been going on in the war between Iran and Israel. The US president has employed his social media platform to provide real-time updates and make claims even before the parties involved get a chance to notify the world of the changed developments.
Let’s take a closer look.
Trump’s Truth on US intervention in Iran
Donald Trump informed the world about the US attacks on Iran’s three key nuclear sites last week in real time.
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,” the US president wrote on his social media platform on early Sunday (June 22).
“All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great American Warriors. There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” he further added.
Shortly after, Trump posted, “Fordow is gone.”
The US president later addressed the nation regarding what he called “our very successful military operation in Iran.” He said it was a “historic” moment for the US, Israel, and the world, adding that “IRAN MUST NOW AGREE TO END THIS WAR.”
Trump also threatened that “any retaliation” by Iran against the US will be countered with a far “greater” force than the American strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, which he described as “monumental”.
Calling for regime change in Iran
Trump also took to his Truth Social account to spark a discussion on regime change in Iran.
He posted, “It’s not politically correct to use the term, ‘Regime Change,’” he wrote, “but if the current Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a Regime change??? MIGA!!!”
Trump demands oil prices control
The US president has no qualms about issuing warnings or threats via his social media platform.
After the American bombing of Iranian nuclear sites, he called on “everyone” to keep oil prices down. He wrote on Monday, “I’M WATCHING! YOU’RE PLAYING RIGHT INTO THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY. DON’T DO IT!”
In a separate post, he demanded that the Department of Energy “DRILL, BABY, DRILL!!! And I mean NOW!!!”
Trump declares Israel-Iran ceasefire
Iran retaliated against the US attacks on its nuclear sites by launching strikes on an American airbase in Qatar on Monday night.
The Al Udeid Airbase was evacuated days earlier and there were no reports of injuries or deaths, with Iranian missiles being successfully intercepted.
On his Truth Social account, the US president responded to Iran’s retaliatory attack, calling it a “very weak response”, which he said was “expected”.
Trump also celebrated that there were no casualties in Tehran’s strike on the US airbase. “Most importantly, they’ve gotten it all out of their “system,” and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He went on to thank Iran for giving the US “early notice” of its missile attack , “which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured.”
Trump later wrote in a separate post in all caps: “CONGRATULATIONS WORLD, IT’S TIME FOR PEACE!”
Just after 3.30 am IST on Tuesday, Trump announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to a “Complete and Total CEASEFIRE.”
“On the assumption that everything works as it should, which it will, I would like to congratulate both Countries, Israel and Iran, on having the Stamina, Courage, and Intelligence to end, what should be called, ‘THE 12 DAY WAR,’” the US president wrote.
Before the ceasefire came into effect, both rivals carried out strikes against each other .
Israel said Iran’s airstrikes killed at least four people and injured 22 in the southern city of Beersheba.
Israel’s overnight strikes on residential buildings in northwest Iran killed nine people and wounded 33, Iranian state media reported, citing a regional official. The governor’s office in Gilan termed it a “terrorist” attack on the city of Astaneh-ye Ashrafiyeh. As per an Iranian government official, 16 of those killed or injured are women and children.
Mohammad Reza Seddiqi, a nuclear scientist, is believed to be among the dead, BBC reported, citing media outlets.
Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had said Tehran would consider halting its military response if Israel stopped its strikes on Iran by 4 am local time (6 am IST) in Tehran. “Together with all Iranians, I thank our brave Armed Forces who remain ready to defend our dear country until their last drop of blood, and who responded to any attack by the enemy until the very last minute.”
In his Truth Social post on early Tuesday, Trump claimed that both Iran and Israel approached him “almost simultaneously, and said, “PEACE!” I knew the time was NOW. The World, and the Middle East, are the real WINNERS!”
Around 10.43 am IST, the US president announced on his social media platform that the ceasefire between Iran and Israel “is now in effect”, urging the rivals not to violate it.
Why Trump’s Truth Social is his megaphone
Since returning to the White House in January, US President Trump has used his Truth Social account to give official updates. Anyone can go to his social media platform to know his views on an array of issues.
From announcing India-Pakistan ceasefire to attacking Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Republican leader has turned his social media into his megaphone.
Notably, Trump is the majority shareholder in Trump Media & Technology Group, the company that owns Truth Social. The social media platform was launched in 2022 after the Republican was banned from Twitter, now X, Facebook and YouTube the previous year.
The US president will directly benefit if his posts drive traffic to Truth Social, as Trump owns 53 per cent of Trump Media’s shares. In December, he put his shares in a trust solely controlled by Donald Trump Jr, his oldest son, who is a company board member.
As Trump Media plans to expand into financial services, there are concerns of conflicts of interest.
Speaking to New York Times (NYT) in February, Harrison Fields, a White House spokesman, said responding to Trump’s possible conflicts of interest that “President Trump is committed to using every direct line of communication to the American people. Alongside his consistent interactions with the press corps, this cements his legacy as the most transparent president in history.”
John Pelissero, a government ethics expert at Santa Clara University, however, advised against it. “He should, as other presidents have done in the past, use just official White House communications when he’s talking about the government and not the company he owns," the expert told the American newspaper.
With inputs from agencies