US President Donald Trump announced on social media on Tuesday, 24, that the ceasefire between Israel and Iran remained in effect, shortly after suggesting that neither country had kept the truce agreed hours earlier.

With new attacks, Trump criticized both countries during a press conference and insinuated that Iran and Israel violated the ceasefire that, according to him, was scheduled to begin at 7 am this Tuesday, local time in Israel (early morning in Brazil).

“Basically, we have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the hell they’re doing,” the American leader said, using an expletive.

Iran's military has denied violating the ceasefire, and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said in a statement that the Israeli strike was limited.

The statements suggest that both countries, which say they prevailed in the conflict, want a ceasefire to hold. An agreement would halt 12 days of war between the Middle East's two biggest military powers, which saw the United States enter the fray by bombing Iranian nuclear facilities.

What does Trump say?

“No one will get hurt, the ceasefire is in effect!” Trump wrote on social media Tuesday morning. He added that Israel would not attack Iran and that the planes would “turn around and go home, while giving a friendly ‘plane wave’ to Iran.”

Trump posted the message after making angry remarks against the countries as he left the White House to fly to a NATO summit in the Netherlands. He suggested the two countries had violated the ceasefire and said he was “not happy”. Trump also criticized Israel for firing on Iran “right after we made the deal”.

The comments added to uncertainty over the truce. In another social media post, Trump warned the Israeli government that it would be a “MAJOR VIOLATION” to bomb Iran and demanded that the country “BRING THE PILOTS HOME, NOW!”

What is the latest news on the conflict?

On Tuesday, Israel accused Iran of breaking the ceasefire with missiles and vowed to retaliate. “In light of the Iranian regime’s grave violation of the ceasefire, we will respond with force,” Eyal Zamir, the Israeli army chief of staff, said in a statement.

Iran's government has denied launching the attacks, Iranian state media reported.

The two countries attacked each other in the final moments before the deal took effect, with sirens sounding in Israel and Iran early Tuesday morning. Iran launched a missile strike on Beersheba in southern Israel that killed at least four people, Israeli officials said. Israel's military said its warplanes hit missile launchers in western Iran.

What else have Trump, Iran and Israel said about the ceasefire?

Announcing the truce on social media, Trump said Iran and Israel would complete ongoing military operations and that the conflict would be “considered over” 24 hours after the ceasefire took effect.

The American struck a conciliatory tone, praising Iran and Israel for agreeing to end the conflict. “This is a war that could have lasted for years and destroyed the entire Middle East, but it did not and never will!” he wrote on Monday, announcing the agreement. Even White House officials were surprised by the news.

The ceasefire was announced hours later on Iran's state broadcaster. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi did not confirm the truce but said military operations against Israel continued"until the last minute, at 4 a.m."

Binyamin Netanyahu's government confirmed the ceasefire at 9 a.m. Israel time on Tuesday. The statement said the prime minister told his ministers and military and security chiefs that Israel had"achieved all its objectives" in the campaign against Iran.

What led to the ceasefire?

The current conflict began on June 13, when Israel launched attacks on military leaders, nuclear facilities and nuclear scientists in Iran.

The US got directly involved over the weekend by attacking three of Iran's most important nuclear facilities, including Fordow, which is built inside a mountain.

Israel has pressed the Trump administration to use American weapons, including a 30,000-pound bunker-busting bomb, to help destroy the sites. Israeli military strikes had already damaged nuclear facilities in Natanz and Isfahan, but it did not have the weapons needed to damage Fordow.

Trump said the sites were “completely and utterly destroyed” by the U.S. strikes, even as other U.S. officials offered more cautious assessments of the damage.

Iran retaliated on Monday by firing missiles at Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East. Trump said all but one of the missiles had been shot down and no U.S. troops were injured or killed.

In Israel, at least 28 people have been killed after Iranian strikes, the government said. The toll includes four people confirmed dead by the Israeli fire and rescue service after an attack in the south of the country on Tuesday.