Washington, June 29: The United States and Iran have agreed to pause mutual attacks “for now” and hold talks on Tuesday in Doha, the capital of Qatar, to work out their dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, US media outlet Axios reported.

The two sides will stand down “for now” and “vessels can move freely” as technical talks are set to continue, a US official was quoted as saying.

The Tuesday talks were originally set to be held in Switzerland and focused on Iran’s nuclear program. However, renewed tensions in the Strait of Hormuz prompted the talks to be moved to Doha, shifting the focus to shipping security in the strategic waterway, Xinhua news agency reported.

During negotiations in Switzerland a week ago, the US delegation agreed with Iran to establish a “hotline” between the US military and Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps to coordinate traffic in the strait.

However, as of Saturday, the “hotline” still wasn’t operational, according to the report.

The United States conducted strikes on Iranian targets on Friday and Saturday, citing “continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping” in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded by striking US military positions in the region.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States had launched fresh air strikes on Iranian military targets after accusing Tehran of again violating the ceasefire agreement by attacking a commercial oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz, warning that the Islamic Republic “will no longer exist” if the attacks continue.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the strikes were carried out at the President’s direction after Iran allegedly launched a one-way attack drone that hit the Panama-flagged tanker M/T Kiku at 4:30 a.m. ET.

The tanker was transiting near the Strait of Hormuz carrying more than two million barrels of crude oil.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said US aircraft had struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations as well as coastal radar sites.

“United States aircraft just struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN! It is very possible that they will never learn!”

“There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” the President wrote.

CENTCOM said Iran had been given an opportunity to comply with the ceasefire after Friday’s US strikes in response to the attack on M/V Ever Lovely.

Washington June 28: US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States had launched fresh air strikes on Iranian military targets after accusing Tehran of again violating the ceasefire agreement by attacking a commercial oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz, warning that the Islamic Republic “will no longer exist” if the attacks continue.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the strikes were carried out at the President’s direction after Iran allegedly launched a one-way attack drone that hit the Panama-flagged tanker M/T Kiku at 4:30 a.m. ET.

The tanker was transiting near the Strait of Hormuz carrying more than two million barrels of crude oil.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said US aircraft had struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations as well as coastal radar sites.

“United States aircraft just struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN! It is very possible that they will never learn!”

“There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” the President wrote.

CENTCOM said Iran had been given an opportunity to comply with the ceasefire after Friday’s US strikes in response to the attack on M/V Ever Lovely.

“After yesterday’s US strikes in response to the Iranian attack on M/V Ever Lovely, Iran was given a chance to honor the ceasefire agreement but elected not to when its forces launched a one-way attack drone that hit M/T Kiku this morning at 4:30 a.m. ET,” the military command said.

It said US forces launched the latest operation “in direct response to continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping.”

According to CENTCOM, US military aircraft targeted Iranian military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defence sites, drone storage facilities and minelayer capabilities.

“Commercial vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz continue. US forces remain vigilant, lethal, and ready,” CENTCOM said.

The latest strikes marked another escalation despite the ceasefire agreement announced earlier this week following days of military confrontation between the United States and Iran. Washington has repeatedly accused Tehran of targeting commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

Tokyo, June 28: An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.1 struck off Iwate Prefecture in northeastern Japan early Sunday, the country’s weather agency said. No tsunami warning was issued.

The temblor occurred at 5:21 a.m. local time off Iwate’s eastern coast at a depth of about 40 km, measuring lower 5 on Japan’s seismic intensity scale of 7 in parts of Aomori and Iwate prefectures, reports Xinhua, quoting the Japan Meteorological Agency.

No abnormalities were reported at the Higashidori nuclear power plant in Aomori or at the Onagawa nuclear power complex in Miyagi Prefecture, according to their operator.

The quake’s epicentre was located at a latitude of 40.2 degrees north and a longitude of 142.4 degrees east.

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake jolted the same region on Thursday, injuring at least 10 people.

Friday saw two quakes — a 5.6-magnitude and 5.8-magnitude — strike near Tokyo, with shaking clearly felt in the capital. At least 10 people were injured.

At 11:49 a.m. on Friday, a 4.1-magnitude earthquake hit southern Ibaraki Prefecture, with tremors also clearly felt in the capital.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, at least four people were injured after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck northeastern Japan.

The temblor, revised up from a preliminary magnitude of 6.9, occurred at around 7:30 a.m. local time off the eastern coast of Iwate Prefecture at a depth of about 40 km. It measured upper 6, the second-highest level on Japan’s seismic scale of 7, in Hashikami Town and lower 6 in Hachinohe City, both in Aomori Prefecture, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.

An intensity of lower 6 means it is difficult to remain standing, and unsecured objects like furniture may topple over, and windows may be damaged, reports Kyodo News, quoting the agency.