Trump calls off Iran strikes, says deal must come rapidly

Donald Trump has cancelled planned military strikes on Iran, saying the move is conditional on Tehran making a deal "rapidly". GB News reports the strikes were called off after a last-minute intervention, while the BBC says Trump announced the decision himself, tying it to the prospect of negotiations.

The Independent carries commentary from Joe Rogan, who said Trump has "no clear way" to end the Iran conflict. The Mirror frames the reversal as a "humiliating climbdown", linking it to what it calls the "reflecting pool saga" - though no other outlet in the cluster explains that reference.

The pattern is familiar: a threatened strike, a reversal, a demand for talks. The bench has watched this sequence play out with North Korea, with the Taliban, with China over trade. The script changes; the structure does not. A threatened strike is a negotiating position until it is called off or carried out - and calling it off moves the question to whether the other side believes the next one.

What to watch: whether Iran responds, and whether a deal materialises in the timeframe Trump set. The gap between "rapidly" and reality will tell the reader which side held the cards.