Israel and Iran halted direct strikes against each other Monday following sustained U.S. pressure, ending the first exchange of fire since the April 8 ceasefire, and an episode that nearly expanded into a far wider Israeli air campaign against Iran.
⭕️🛩️ STRUCK: The IDF completed a large-scale strike on strategic defense systems belonging to the Iranian terror regime.
Recently, defense systems were deployed across Iran to restore the regime’s capabilities degraded during Operation Roaring Lion. The strike led to the… pic.twitter.com/eEqV2QnXK3
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2026
Iran’s military joint command announced it was ceasing offensive operations, warning that further “aggression and hostile acts,” including in Lebanon, would be met with “much more severe and crushing measures.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address that “fire on that front is contained,” while warning Iran that any resumption of attacks would draw a full Israeli response.
Statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, this evening:
“A year ago, we launched a historic preemptive strike against Iran’s intention to destroy us with atomic bombs. We thwarted this immediate threat – and we also eliminated the tyrant Khamenei.If we had not acted in… pic.twitter.com/bSxNqr3MYm
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) June 8, 2026
The most significant detail to emerge from Monday’s standoff: Israeli officials told Ynet News that dozens of fighter jets were fueled and positioned for a far wider strike on Iran before U.S. President Donald Trump intervened by phone and reduced the scope of the operation.
The strikes that did go forward hit Iranian air defense positions and the Karoon Petrochemical complex in Mahshahr, a facility owned by the Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company, which the U.S. Treasury sanctioned in 2019 over ties to Iran’s ballistic missile program.
🎥FIRST FOOTAGE: Watch IDF strikes targeting aerial defense systems in Iran, which housed missiles intended to target aircraft. pic.twitter.com/7pWhnOuSGV
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2026
The Israeli military confirmed it targeted the plant because it produced materials used in ballistic missile manufacturing.
Trump told Axios he warned Netanyahu during the call: “Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon.” A senior U.S. official said Israel notified Washington that strikes were incoming only after the missiles were already airborne.
As both sides stood down, U.S. Central Command confirmed an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the USS Abraham Lincoln disabled the Palau-flagged oil tanker M/T Marivex in the Gulf of Oman after the vessel attempted to breach the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports. All 24 Indian crew members were evacuated safely. It was the seventh commercial vessel disabled under the blockade since mid-April.
Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani said after a Security Council session that the two sides could reach “a conclusion” on a peace deal “very soon.”
