US says Iran ceasefire 'terminated' hostilities for war powers deadline - report

The Trump administration said Thursday that the US-Iran ceasefire that began in early April has "terminated" hostilities between the two sides for the purposes of the War Powers Resolution, evading a congressional deadline that fell on Friday, according to a Reuters report.

"For War Powers Resolution purposes, the hostilities that began on Saturday, February 28, have terminated," a senior administration official told Reuters, adding that there had been no exchange of fire between US armed forces and Iran since the fragile ceasefire began more than three weeks ago.

Trump formally notified Congress of the conflict 48 hours after the start of the war, triggering a 60-day deadline under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which allows the president to wage military action for 60 days before ending it, seeking congressional authorization, or requesting a 30-day extension on grounds of "unavoidable military necessity." 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Senate hearing Thursday he understood that the 60-day clock stopped during the truce. Opposition Democrats disputed that, saying there was no such legal provision in the law.

Earlier, analysts and congressional aides had expected Trump to either notify Congress of a 30-day extension or disregard the deadline entirely. Trump's Republican Party holds a narrow majority in both chambers of Congress. Democrats have repeatedly tried since the war began to pass resolutions forcing Trump to withdraw US forces or obtain congressional authorization, with Republicans voting them down each time.

The administration's position that the ceasefire constitutes an end to hostilities allows the conflict to continue in its current form, with the US naval blockade of Iran still in place, without formal congressional approval.