Live: Iran holds funeral for top military, nuclear figures killed in Israeli strikes

Israeli air raids on residential areas in Iran’s northern Gilan province killed nine people early Tuesday, according to a local official.

The deputy governor of Gilan told Tasnim news agency the attacks struck homes, causing multiple fatalities. No further details have been released.

An Israeli official has told the Walla news site that the ceasefire declared by US President Donald Trump between Israel and Iran will continue—if both sides stick to it.

“Trump announced a ceasefire. If all sides uphold it, it will hold,” the unnamed official was quoted as saying.

So far, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials have made no public comments.

US President Donald Trump has posted on Truth Social, saying: “The ceasefire is now in effect. Please do not violate it!”

His remarks come despite Israel not formally agreeing to any truce. Earlier, Iranian state television claimed a ceasefire had been “imposed” on Israel following a wave of missile strikes.

There has been no official response from Israeli authorities.

Iranian state media says a ceasefire has taken hold after Tehran launched a wave of missiles towards Israel.

Press TV reported that the strikes had ended and a ceasefire came into effect “following the conclusion” of the barrages.

The Iranian attack saw dozens of projectiles fired across the border. At least one missile hit an apartment block in the southern city of Beersheba, killing at least four and injuring several others, according to Israeli emergency services.

The Israeli prime minister’s office has not issued any statement.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

Here are the latest developments from Israel's war on Iran:

• US announces ceasefire: President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire between Iran and Israel, but neither country publicly confirmed the deal at the time.

• Iran’s condition for stopping strikes: Tehran later stated it would halt attacks if Israel did the same. No immediate response has come from Israeli officials.

• Casualties in southern Israel: At least four people were killed in Iranian strikes, according to Israel’s fire and rescue service. Several waves of attacks hit the region in quick succession.

• False alarm in Iraq: A senior US military official told the Associated Press that reports of an attack on a base housing American forces were incorrect. The alert was triggered by debris from a malfunctioning Iranian missile aimed at Israel.

• Netanyahu’s silence: The Israeli prime minister has not commented on Trump’s ceasefire announcement. The Jerusalem Post reported he held a late-night Security Cabinet meeting and instructed ministers not to discuss the deal publicly.

• Iranian scientist killed: Iran’s Press TV said the country's nuclear scientist Sedighi Saber was “assassinated” in an Israeli strike in Tehran.

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Araghchi said early Tuesday that “as of now, there is NO ‘agreement’ on any ceasefire or cessation of military operations. However, provided that the Israeli regime stops its illegal aggression against the Iranian people no later than 4 am Tehran time, we have no intention to continue our response afterwards."

"The final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later," he added in a statement posted on X.

He said: “The military operations of our powerful Armed Forces to punish Israel for its aggression continued until the very last minute, at 4am. Together with all Iranians, I thank our brave Armed Forces who remain ready to defend our dear country until their last drop of blood, and who responded to any attack by the enemy until the very last minute.”

Araghchi's  statements are considered the first official Iranian response on the ceasefire deal announced by US president Donald Trump between Israel and Iran.

US President Donald Trump told NBC News that he expects that the ceasefire he brokered between Israel and Iran to last "forever."

"I think the ceasefire is unlimited. It's going to go forever," he told the network.

Earlier, Reuters has cited an unnamed senior White House official as saying that Trump has brokered the ceasefire deal during  a call with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while other US senior officials contacted Iranian officials.

The official said that Israel agreed to the ceasefire so long as Iran does not launch new  attacks. Iran gae s signs that it would abide by the agreement, according to the official.

Reuters has cited an unnamed White House official as saying that US vice President JD Vance, US secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff have all held direct and indirect talks to secure the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, which was annouced earlier by US president Donald Trump.

An official Iranian source told Al Jazeera that the possibility of implementing a ceasefire to end the Israeli conflict will be discussed within hours. He added that “an end to the Israeli aggression is the gateway to dialogue with Iran”.

“We do not trust America and are communicating with friendly countries,” said the unnamed Iranian official to Al Jazeera.

The Israeli military said it intercepted, in the early hours of Tuesday, four drones that flew from Iran.

It said one of the drones was downed over the southern Golan Heights, while the other three were intercepted before crossing to Israel.

Reuters has quoted an unnamed US source as saying that the Qatari prime minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has received Tehran’s approval on the US proposed ceasefire in the conflict with Israel, during a phone call with Iranian officials.

The call, according to Reuters,  came after US president Donald Trump had informed Qatar’s emir that Israel agreed to the ceasefire and asked for Doha’s support in convincing Tehran to agree to the deal from its part, the official said.

Reuters says the agreement was reached after Iran had launched missiles on the US air base Al Udeid in Qatar.

Meanwhile, no official confirmations have been issued by either Iran or Israel regarding the ceasefire.

A Senior Iranian official has confirmed to Reuters that Tehran has agreed to “Qatar-mediated” US proposed ceasefire with Israel.

Reuters has also reported that US president Donald Trump has informed the emir of Qatar that Israel has agreed to the ceasefire, and asked for Doha's support to convince Iran to agree to stop the war.

Earlier, Trump had announced a ceasefire will come into effect between Israel and Iran over the next 24 hours. 

However, neither Iran nor Israel have issued official confirmations yet.

US Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on Monday that Iran's "bully" behaviour in the region was hindering the progress of Arab Gulf states.

"Now that the 12-day war appears to be effectively over, we have an opportunity, I think, to restart a real peace process," Vance said. "This is not just about two countries, Iran and Israel. All of these Gulf Arab states, they want peace. They want to invest, they want to build artificial intelligence hardware. They want to sort of come into the new economy, and that was impossible when you had Iran that was - as the president said - acting like a bully across the Middle East."

"We really think that if the Iranians are smart about the path forward, this could be a new dawn of an economic age of prosperity, of course, for Gulf Arab allies, for us, for the Israelis, for everybody, but it's going to require the Iranians play it smart from here," he added.

As to the notion of regime change that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been touting, Vance said "if the Iranian people want to do something about their own leadership, that's up to the Iranian people."

Just after 6pm eastern time on Monday, US President Donald Trump announced that he has sealed a ceasefire deal between Iran and Israel that will go into effect at midnight, local time in Washington, DC.

"CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE! It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE (in approximately 6 hours from now, when Israel and Iran have wound down and completed their in progress, final missions!), for 12 hours, at which point the War will be considered, ENDED!" Trump wrote on his social media platform TruthSocial.

"Officially, Iran will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 12th Hour, Israel will start the CEASEFIRE and, upon the 24th Hour, an Official END to THE 12 DAY WAR will be saluted by the World," he added.

"During each CEASEFIRE, the other side will remain PEACEFUL and RESPECTFUL. On the assumption that everything works as it should, which it will, I would like to congratulate both Countries, Israel and Iran, on having the Stamina, Courage, and Intelligence to end, what should be called, 'THE 12 DAY WAR.' This is a War that could have gone on for years, and destroyed the entire Middle East, but it didn’t, and never will! God bless Israel, God bless Iran, God bless the Middle East, God bless the United States of America, and GOD BLESS THE WORLD!"

In a post on X late on Monday, Israeli forces shared an "urgent warning" for residents in Tehran's District 7 to evacuate. 

"The Israeli army will operate in this area, as it has done in recent days throughout Iran to attack the Iranian regime's military infrastructure," the post said in Farsi.

"For your safety and health, we ask that you immediately leave the designated area on the map and do not approach it for the next few hours. Your presence in this area puts your life at risk," the Israeli military said.