A dramatic diplomatic reversal unfolded on Thursday as the United States military came within roughly 180 minutes of firing missiles into Iranian territory, only for President Donald Trump to abruptly call off the operation by declaring on social media that a pact had been finalized, two American officials revealed to NBC News.
Prior to the sudden cancellation, the armed forces were fully mobilized and had already been handed direct execution orders from the commander-in-chief for a Thursday evening assault. According to the sources quoted by NBC News, US Navy vessels had systematically modified their daily aviation flight paths and loaded live munitions onto launch platforms in anticipation of the combat directive.
The defense sources clarified that Kharg Island had been excluded from the active target matrix, despite the President's public threats pointing toward the strategic hub. While the Pentagon has maintained highly detailed operational blueprints to strike or even launch an amphibious invasion of Kharg Island over the last several months, officials emphasized that those files represented routine contingency planning for worst-case scenarios and had never received presidential authorization.
The American military has previously bombarded Kharg Island during periods of high-intensity warfare. On Thursday morning, Trump published a message on Truth Social warning that the US would be striking Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT," and asserting that in the near future, American forces would be “taking Kharg Island" and other oil infrastructure.
However, that specific social media statement did not match “with any of the planning or action" that the armed forces were actually orchestrating for the Thursday operation, one official remarked.
While the Pentagon maintained a broad array of responses, military planners did not map out the exact tactical coordinates for Thursday night's aborted mission until after the President's morning social media post, the two US officials stated. Following that post, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth explicitly instructed defense chiefs that he wanted the imminent strikes inside Iran to diverge from the standard retaliatory packages he had been briefed on over the preceding weeks.
Ultimately, the officials noted that the blueprints finalized for Thursday night heavily mirrored the precision strikes the US military had already executed on Wednesday evening.
Hours after announcing the deal with Iran on social media, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has approved the deal between the two countries.
“I understand the answer is yes," Trump replied when asked if Khamenei had given his approval to the agreement.
One reporter asked the President why he is so convinced that a deal will finally be signed this time, to which he replied, “Because they've taken a pounding. They've taken a pounding like very few people could take. And they want to make a deal a lot more than I do."
He also stressed, “Iran will, in no way, shape, or form, build a nuclear weapon or purchase a nuclear weapon."
Al Arabiya reported some of the details of the agreement taking shape between the United States and Iran.
According to the report, the understandings include extending the ceasefire by at least 60 days, mine clearance operations, and reopening the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping within 30 days.
Additionally, the framework would allow Iran to sell and export oil alongside a phased review of sanctions relief, the continuation of nuclear negotiations during the 60-day period, and a ceasefire across all fronts.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the developing Memorandum of Understanding is in its advanced stages and is "nearly finalized."
According to the statement, the mediating countries have been working in recent hours to bridge the remaining gaps between the parties. However, at this stage, the agreement has not yet been fully completed or officially approved.
The Tasnim news agency quoted the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson as saying that Iran has proven it will not compromise on what it defined as its "red lines."
According to the report, Iran has not yet reached a final conclusion regarding the agreement.