During the conflict that began in early 2026, President Donald Trump has called off planned strikes or claimed that the war with Iran was effectively over, paused, or nearing a final peace deal a total of seven times.
The primary instances tracked by news outlets include:March 9: Trump told CBS that the war was "very complete, pretty much" and that the military operation was "way ahead of schedule," before later stating it was "both complete and just beginning."March 23: Trump posted on Truth Social that he was postponing all military strikes for five days following "productive conversations" regarding a total resolution of hostilities.April 7: Facing a self-imposed deadline, Trump called off scheduled attacks on Iranian infrastructure and announced a two-week ceasefire, asserting the U.S. was "very close to a deal."April 21: Unilaterally extending the previous pause, Trump announced an indefinite ceasefire, claiming foreign mediators asked him to hold off to allow Iran to draft a new peace proposal.May 18: Trump walked back a major planned weekend military strike, stating that "serious negotiations" were underway and that he had been told "a deal will be made."June 11: After threatening to hit Iran "VERY HARD" and seize its oil assets, Trump announced a breakthrough just a few hours later, calling off the targeted strikes. (This eventually led to a brief Memorandum of Understanding on June 17 that collapsed within days).July 27 / August 1: Following intense daily exchanges, Trump paused strikes again. He claimed the "parameters of a deal" had been agreed upon at the request of regional allies, even though Iran denied participating in direct peace talks.A comprehensive breakdown of this diplomatic cycle can be found in detailed media analyses by The Times and Al Jazeera.
Is the war over? Doesn't seem to be!
