US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday morning that a ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Iran, tentatively ending a 12-day conflict between the two countries.

A ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Iran on Tuesday morning, bringing a tentative end to the 12-day conflict between the two countries which began after Israel carried out strikes on Iran's nuclear assets and its top military commanders.

The ceasefire was first announced by US President Donald Trump, who said in a post on Truth Social, his own social media platform, that a “complete and total” ceasefire between Israel and Iran was “fully agreed” to.

Trump’s declaration followed a limited strike by Iran on a US military base in Qatar on Monday, a response to American airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

Shortly after 7am CET, Trump posted a second time to proclaim that the ceasefire was "now in effect".

Iranian state media also acknowledged the truce had begun, with the Israeli government following soon after with an announcement of its own, though "“Israel will respond forcefully to any violation of the ceasefire,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned.

The two sides exchanged a barrage of strikes in the hours right before the ceasefire took effect, resulting in five people being killed in the Israeli city of Beersheba and nine in Iran, local authorities said.

An anonymous White House official said that said Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff communicated with the Iranians through direct and indirect channels.

He added that the Qatari government played an important role in brokering the coming ceasefire. Trump spoke to Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, to thank him for helping land the agreement.

The Gulf state has also been one of the primary mediators in the on-and-off ceasefire and hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas in their ongoing war on Gaza.

Status of Iran's nuclear programme still unclear

On Sunday, the Trump administration had insisted that Iran abandon its programme to enrich uranium for possible use in nuclear weapons as a condition of any lasting peace.

While the bombings of the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan facilities were a powerful show of force, it remained uncertain just how much nuclear material Iran still possessed and what its ambitions would be going forward.

The ceasefire announcement came after Iran attempted to retaliate for the US assault with a Monday missile strike aimed at Washington’s Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar. Trump separately thanked Iran on social media for giving the US and allies “early notice” of the retaliation.

He also expressed hope that Tehran — following its retaliation for Washington’s attacks — had "gotten it all out of their ‘system’” and that the moment would lead to a de-escalation in the Israel-Iran war.

The Iranian attack on Al-Udeid Air Base marked Tehran's first act of direct retaliation against the US since Trump ordered strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities on Sunday.

Trump's announcement comes just before he leaves Tuesday for a NATO summit in the Netherlands, where he will likely make the case that his mix of aggression and diplomacy has succeeded.