Latest in Iran: Ceasefire begins to unravel, Trump promises troops will remain in the region

A tentative ceasefire in the war with Iran began to unravel as Israel continued intense bombing in Beirut and Iran maintains a hold on the Strait of Hormuz. 

Both Iran and U.S. have declared victory with the announcement of the ceasefire but pressure from either side continues. 

The United States has maintained that the ceasefire must include the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium. There remains questions about whether Lebanon is included. 

In-person talks between the U.S. and Iran are scheduled to take place this weekend in Pakistan. 

TOPSHOT - A fireball rises from a building hit by an Israeli airstrike in the area of Abbasiyeh, on the outskirts of the southern Lebanese city of Tyre, on April 8, 2026. (Photo by Kawnat HAJU / AFP via Getty Images)

Here’s the latest from Thursday: 

"Iran has suffered a generational military defeat"

8:45 a.m. ET: Head of the U.S. Central Command, Navy Adm. Brad Cooper said Iran has suffered "a generational military defeat," in a video message released Thursday. 

"The United States and Israel systematically destroyed Iran’s ability to conduct large-scale military operations for years to come," Cooper said.

He added in the message his forces will "remain present" in the Middle East as the two-week ceasefire has taken effect. 

Trump promises troops will remain in the region

6:25 a.m. ET: President Donald Trump posted to Truth Social saying that military personnel and equipment will stay in the region "until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with."

In the post, Trump also reiterated that Iran must not have the ability to build nuclear weapons and the Strait of Hormuz must be open and safe. 

2-week ceasefire deal details remain unclear

Dig deeper:

Despite striking a ceasefire deal that would postpone strikes for two weeks, finer details of the deal remained unclear Wednesday. 

The Trump administration demanded that the Strait of Hormuz be reopened as a condition of the deal, Iranian state media reported that the passage was "fully closed," according to The New York Times. The closure was in response to continued Israeli attacks in Lebanon. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi insisted that an end to the war in Lebanon was part of the ceasefire deal, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump said the truce did not cover Lebanon. 

When the deal was announced, Pakistan's prime minister, whose country served as a mediator, said in a social media post that it applied to "everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere."

Only 11 vessels moved through the strait Wednesday, roughly the same as in prior days, according to Windward, a maritime intelligence firm. 

Iran was requiring shippers to pay tolls of up to $1 a barrel for outbound oil, it said. The largest supertankers carry up to 3 million barrels of crude.