Trump Describes US-Iran Ceasefire as On Life Support

President Trump said the ceasefire with Iran remains in limbo and described the Iranian response to a US peace proposal as unacceptable. The president told reporters he has not decided on next steps. His administration has described recent clashes as skirmishes while expressing intent to maintain the ceasefire and pursue negotiations on US terms.

Trump told Fox News the ceasefire is unbelievably weak. "I would say the ceasefire is on massive life support, where the doctor walks in and says, 'Sir, your loved-one has approximately a one-percent chance of living,'" Trump said. He added that Iranian negotiators told him the US would have to retrieve nuclear dust from destroyed Iranian facilities because Iran lacks the technology to do so.

The president said he is considering resuming Project Freedom, a US operation aimed at freeing ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz. The operation was suspended one week after it began. Trump has not made a final decision on reviving it. Trump reiterated that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.

"Iran has been defeated militarily, totally," he said. "They have a little left, they probably built up during this period of time. We'll knock that out in about a day. But I have a plan – it's a very simple plan ... " Iran has denied seeking a nuclear weapon.

Iranian officials have said they seek sufficient guarantees that war will not recur. Reporting from Tehran, Tohid Asadi said the two sides remain far apart on demands. Iran has described some US positions as maximalist and cited two rounds of US and Israeli strikes during past negotiations as a source of mistrust.

Trump told Fox News that Iran's hardline leaders will fold and that he will deal with them until they reach an agreement. He described Iran's counterproposal, sent via Pakistan, as stupid and said nobody would take it. More than a month after the ceasefire took effect, talks have faltered over Iran's demand for a permanent end to the war and the US insistence that Iran first reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Council approved sending up to 40 troops and civilian defence staff to an international maritime security mission in the Strait of Hormuz. The proposal requires parliamentary approval before proceeding. In Gaza, the Health Ministry reported the death toll from Israeli operations since October 2023 has reached 72,740, with 172,192 wounded.

It said at least three people were killed and 16 wounded in the latest 24-hour period. Since a ceasefire took effect on October 11, 2025, Israeli attacks have killed at least 854 people in Gaza, the ministry said. In southern Lebanon, correspondent Obaida Hitto reported ongoing Israeli air strikes and artillery fire despite a ceasefire agreement.

Hezbollah fired a surface-to-air missile at an Israeli drone over Tyre. A woman and her grandson were killed in an attack on Abba. Talks between Lebanese and Israeli parties are scheduled for Thursday and Friday in Washington. Trump told CBS News he wants to suspend the federal gas tax temporarily as prices have risen amid the conflict with Iran.

He said the tax would phase back in once prices fall. Suspending the tax would require an act of Congress and would cost the federal government about $500 million a week.