Iran Announces Halt to Military Operations Against Israel After Renewed Regional Escalation

Iran's military command announced on Monday that it would suspend military operations against Israel, following a fresh round of exchanges between the two countries that threatened to unravel the ceasefire agreed on April 8.

The announcement came from Khatam al-Anbiya, the military headquarters overseen by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). In a statement, it said Iran had delivered a “painful response” to Israel and that “accordingly, the cessation of armed forces operations is hereby announced.”

“However, it is emphasised that should acts of aggression and hostility continue, including in southern Lebanon, much more severe and crushing measures than before will follow,” it added, according to AFP.

The announcement came as the conflict entered its 100th day and tensions surged following Israeli strikes on a petrochemical complex in Iran. Israel alleged the facility was being used to produce ballistic missiles.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it retaliated by targeting a similar petrochemical facility in the Israeli city of Haifa.

The latest escalation followed Iranian missile attacks on northern Israel on Sunday, launched in response to Israeli airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs. The strikes marked the first direct Iranian attack on Israel since the April ceasefire.

Israel said its operations in Lebanon were directed at sites associated with the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement. According to Al Jazeera, the attacks on Beirut were the first on the Lebanese capital since Washington announced an extension of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement last week.

Concerns over regional security widened after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement declared a ban on Israeli-linked shipping in the Red Sea and claimed responsibility for a missile strike on Israel.

"We declare a complete and total ban on Israeli maritime navigation in the Red Sea," the Houthis said in a statement. "We consider all enemy movements to be legitimate military targets for our armed forces from the moment this statement is issued."

The Houthis had previously targeted commercial vessels in the Red Sea during Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza. While the group joined the broader regional conflict in support of Iran in March, it had not launched attacks against Israel since the April 8 ceasefire came into effect.

On Monday, however, the Houthis said they had "launched a missile barrage targeting sensitive Israeli enemy targets," claiming the strikes "achieved their objectives with precision."

Earlier, the Israeli military said it had "identified the launch of a missile from Yemen toward Israeli territory" and that "aerial defense systems are operating to intercept the threat."

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accused Israel of repeatedly violating a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that took effect in mid-April, according to DW.

Figures released by Salam's office after a cabinet meeting claimed Israeli forces had carried out 3,491 airstrikes, 407 controlled demolitions and six large-scale destruction operations since the truce began, with some villages in southern Lebanon reportedly flattened.

Israel has not responded to those figures. However, the Israeli military has consistently maintained that its operations target only Hezbollah positions, infrastructure and military assets.

Amid the renewed escalation, U.S. President Donald Trump called on both sides to "immediately stop 'shooting'", while Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei argued that Washington bears direct responsibility for any breaches of the April 8 ceasefire arrangement.

“No one believes the Zionist regime acts without coordination with the United States,” Baghaei said.