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Iran, US trade strikes despite ceasefire

May 8, 2026, 6:42am EDT
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An Iranian Navy missile.
Pool via WANA via Reuters

The US and Iran traded fire even as Washington insisted a month-long ceasefire was still holding and President Donald Trump threatened renewed strikes if Tehran did not agree to a firm truce.

Both sides appear to be gearing up for a protracted standoff: The US won belated approval from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to use their bases and airspace were it to attack Iran again; a leaked CIA intelligence report seen by The Washington Post, meanwhile, said Tehran still had about 70% of its pre-war missile stockpile and its economy, though reeling, was not close to collapse — a very different picture to the one painted by the White House.

— Tom Chivers
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