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Iran\u2019s ceasefire with the United States reportedly turned on a dramatic final-hour intervention from Mojtaba Khamenei, the country\u2019s still-unseen new supreme leader, whom sources said gave negotiators the green light to move toward a deal as President Donald Trump\u2019s deadline \u2014 and the threat of a much broader U.S. bombardment \u2014 loomed.<\/span><\/p>\n U.S. and Israeli officials learned Monday that Mojtaba had, for the first time since the conflict began, instructed negotiators to move toward an agreement, according<\/a> to Axios<\/em>, which cited Israeli, regional, and other sources familiar with the talks.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWithout his green light, there wouldn\u2019t have been a deal,\u201d one regional source told the outlet, which said his approval was viewed by multiple sources as a \u201cbreakthrough.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The report describes a volatile final stretch in which Trump publicly warned that \u201ca whole civilization will die tonight\u201d (ahead of his 8 p.m. Eastern Tuesday deadline<\/a> for Iran to agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz), even as diplomacy accelerated behind the scenes to avert a far wider escalation.<\/span><\/p>\n According to the outlet, U.S. forces in the Middle East and Pentagon officials spent those closing hours preparing for a massive bombing campaign on Iranian infrastructure while uncertainty persisted over Trump\u2019s ultimate decision.<\/span><\/p>\n At the same time, negotiations were described as \u201cchaotic,\u201d with Pakistani mediators relaying proposals between U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff \u2014 who on Monday blasted Iran\u2019s initial 10-point counterproposal as \u201ca disaster, a catastrophe\u201d \u2014 and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, as Egypt and Turkey worked to narrow remaining gaps.<\/span><\/p>\n By Monday night, the United States had approved an updated proposal for a two-week ceasefire. The final decision rested with Khamenei, who sources said was actively involved in the process on Monday and Tuesday.<\/span><\/p>\n The outlet reported that Khamenei, facing an active threat of assassination by Israel, was communicating primarily through runners passing handwritten notes \u2014 a clandestine process underscoring both the secrecy of his role and the uncertainty surrounding his condition.<\/span><\/p>\n Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was also said<\/a> to have played a central role in advancing the talks and pressing commanders within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to accept a deal, while China urged Tehran to seek an off-ramp.<\/span><\/p>\n By around midday Tuesday, there was a general understanding that the parties were converging on a ceasefire. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif \u2014 serving as a key intermediary \u2014 published the terms on X hours later and called<\/a> on both sides to accept.<\/span><\/p>\n