WASHINGTON, D.C. — United States President Donald Trump announced on August 1, 2026 that the United States and Israel have agreed to hold off on new military strikes against Iran, conditional on rapidly securing a deal to end the five-month regional conflict.
Golden Info reports that President Donald Trump posted the statement on Truth Social following discussions with Saudi Arabia‘s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and mediation efforts involving Pakistan and Turkey. Trump stated that the United States was “locked and loaded and ready to go against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” but added that “we have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack”. Trump further stated, “Based on this request, I have agreed, for the future benefit of the WORLD and, likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran, to cancel the attack, subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL,” adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joined the commitment.
Iran‘s Mehr News Agency, citing military officials, characterized the statement that Tehran requested a pause as “nothing but a new lie” and stated that Iran‘s military remains “on high alert and ready for any eventuality”. Iranian state media reported that Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers held a telephone conversation, alongside separate discussions between Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey regarding “the risk of escalating tensions and insecurity in the region”.
The Saudi Press Agency stated that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a phone call with Trump, during which he “emphasised the necessity of prioritising dialogue to reduce tensions and the importance of exerting all possible efforts to achieve a truce that paves the way for diplomatic solutions”. Trump specified that any agreement must include the “Immediate, Complete and Total OPENING OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT, and an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.” However, Iran‘s Fars News Agency, citing a source close to negotiators, stated that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed “as long as the United States maintains its hostile actions”.
The conflict began on February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Tehran. Maritime trade tracking firm Kpler reported on July 31, 2026 that vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz dropped sharply following Iran‘s enforcement of transit fees and permissions. On July 29, 2026, a drone struck a US-owned gas vessel in an Egyptian port, while an unidentified projectile struck a tanker off the coast of Oman on August 1, 2026.
In the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Yemen‘s Houthi rebels denied on August 1, 2026 that they were seeking to charge commercial vessels transit fees for passage connecting the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean.