Defense & National Security Newsletter

Trump’s fragile ceasefire with Iran already showing cracks

by Ellen Mitchell - 04/08/26 7:37 PM ET

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by Ellen Mitchell - 04/08/26 7:37 PM ET

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Mohammed Zaatari, Associated Press

Rescuers and Lebanese soldiers gather on a destroyed religious complex that was hit in an Israeli airstrike in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, April 8, 2026.

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Trump’s fragile ceasefire with Iran already showing cracks

Israel launched a barrage of attacks without warning in Lebanon on Wednesday as a fragile ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran hangs in the balance.

The attacks, which struck more than 100 sites in 10 minutes, were of the largest scale in Lebanon since Israel started its latest offensive there more than a month ago. It stands to expose a major stumbling block in the hours after fragile negotiations were agreed upon to pause fighting between the U.S. and Iran.

And the effects have already begun less than 24 hours since the deal has been announced. Iran has subsequently closed the Strait of Hormuz, the Fars News Agency reported on Wednesday, citing Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.

Iran has threatened to keep the waterway closed until Israel halts its strikes in Lebanon, jeopardizing a key aspect of the ceasefire. The closure of the vital shipping lane since the start of the conflict in late February has caused a crisis in global energy markets.

Disagreements also have emerged over whether ending the fighting in Lebanon should be part of that two-week ceasefire.

In its 10-point peace plan, Iran included an end to Israel’s operation. In announcing the deal, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran included Lebanon.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apparently dismissed that portion of the proposal, asserting that the ceasefire “does not include Lebanon.”

Trump appeared to side with Netanyahu on Wednesday. When asked by “PBS News Hour” if he had seen the increased fighting in Lebanon, the president responded, “Yeah, they were not included in the deal” because of Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group.

When asked if Israel should continue its barrage of attacks in Lebanon, Trump said: “It’s part of the deal — everyone knows that. It’s a separate skirmish.”

Israel’s military said it carried out its largest attack against Hezbollah infrastructures, bombing over 100 sites in 10 minutes, and added most of the targeted sites were located “within the heart of the civilian population.” A statement said targets included “Hezbollah headquarters, military arrays and command-and-control centers.”

Read the full report at thehill.com.

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I’m Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.

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