The United Nations secretary-general António Guterres has welcomed the ceasefire announcement between Iran and Israel.

Before both sides confirmed that a ceasefire was in place early Tuesday, they exchanged fire, with Tehran residents saying they had experienced a heavy barrage of attacks.

In a social media post, the UN chief urged both countries to respect the ceasefire fully.

“The fighting must stop. The people of the two countries have already suffered too much,” Mr Guterres said. “It is my sincere hope that this ceasefire can be replicated in the other conflicts in the region.”

The director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, stressed the need for strong new nuclear deal. The head of the UN-backed nuclear watchdog urged Tehran to consider “resuming cooperation” with the international community to quell any lingering hostility around its nuclear programme.

“Resuming cooperation with IAEA is key to a successful agreement,” the IAEA chief stressed, adding that he had offered to meet Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi to work together.

Mr Grossi said this step “can lead to a diplomatic solution to the long-standing controversy” over Iran’s nuclear programme.

A fragile ceasefire proposed by the United States seemed to take hold briefly on Tuesday morning before reports of further Iranian missile strikes on Israel, which Tehran disputed.

The Iran-Israel conflict began with Israeli air attacks on June 13 and escalated over the weekend with U.S. forces striking Iranian nuclear facilities.

Hundreds of civilians have reportedly been killed in the Israeli airstrikes, while Iran’s retaliatory strikes killed at least 30 people in Israel.

An updated casualty count from the Iranian authorities on Tuesday indicated that 610 people had been killed, including 49 women and 13 children, since June 13.

That number included two pregnant women and one infant, along with 4,746 injured, including 185 women and 65 minors. Seven hospitals, four health units, six emergency bases and nine ambulances were also damaged, according to the Iranian health authorities.

Some 28 Israeli citizens have reportedly been killed by Iranian missile strikes to date.

Before leaving Washington for a NATO Summit in the Netherlands, President Donald Trump expressed his frustration at the breaches of the fragile ceasefire agreement, urging Iran and Israel to observe the truce.

(NAN)