Pentagon chief: ceasefire with Iran is not over

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday that a U.S. operation to protect commercial ships from Iran in the Strait of Hormuz is temporary, Washington is not looking for a fight and the ceasefire with Iran is still in effect.

"The ceasefire is not over," Hegseth told reporters.

"We said we would defend and defend aggressively, and we absolutely have. Iran knows that, and ultimately, the president can make a decision whether anything were to escalate into a violation of a ceasefire," he said.

A fragile truce in the Middle East was under strain on Tuesday after the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in the Gulf as they wrestled for control of the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. President Donald Trump launched a new operation, called Project Freedom, on Monday as he sought to wrest control of the critical waterway from Iran, which effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S. and Israel started the conflict on February 28.

Hegseth said that Iran does not control the strait.

"Project Freedom is defensive in nature, focused in scope and temporary in duration, with one mission, protecting innocent commercial shipping from Iranian aggression. American forces won't need to enter Iranian waters or airspace. It's not necessary. We're not looking for a fight," Hegseth said.

-Reporting by Idrees Ali, Katharine Jackson; editing by Michelle Nichols/Reuters