The two-week ceasefire in the Iran war was secured only after a frantic, last-minute mediation effort led by Shehbaz Sharif, with negotiations reportedly on the brink of collapse just hours before the deadline.
This is according to Reuters, which describes how Pakistani officials worked through the night to relay messages between Donald Trump's administration and Iranian leadership, as escalating tensions (including an Iranian strike on a Saudi petrochemical facility) threatened to derail weeks of back-channel diplomacy.
According to these sources, the breakthrough came after Islamabad secured assurances from Washington that Israel would scale back its attacks, a key condition for Tehran to agree to a temporary truce without preconditions. Iran subsequently accepted the ceasefire and agreed to enter formal negotiations.
The diplomatic push involved contacts across all sides, including US Vice President JD Vance, envoy Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. At one point, Donald Trump was reportedly in direct contact with Pakistan's army chief as the agreement was finalised.
While Israel initially opposed a deal, believing further military action could weaken Iran, it ultimately deferred to Washington's decision. Israeli officials have since stressed that the ceasefire does not guarantee a permanent end to the conflict.
Negotiations between the US and Iran are expected to begin in Islamabad in the coming days. Despite the breakthrough, tensions remain high, with both sides signalling that fighting could resume if talks fail.
