'I live 30kms away; it felt like an earthquake! Massive booms, flying missiles…' - Prof Mehran Kamrava, Qatar
A fragile ceasefire appears to be taking hold following a series of escalating attacks.
Picture: Eyad BABA/AFP
CapeTalk's John Maytham (in for Lester Kiewit) is joined by Professor Mehran Kamrava of Georgetown University in Qatar.
Listen below:
Just hours after Iran launched a missile attack targeting a US missile base in Qatar, the world awoke on Tuesday to news of a ceasefire in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump announced on social media that hostilities between Iran and Israel, during what he called the '12-Day War', have come to a halt.
It follows a series of retaliatory attacks between Israel and Iran and US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend.
Kamrava says while it's still early, the ceasefire looks to be holding.
"All ceasefires are extremely fragile in the first few hours, and this is no exception."
- Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government - Georgetown University, Qatar
The ceasefire came only a few hours after explosions were reported in Tehran and Iranian forces launched attacks on American military bases in Qatar.
"I live about 30 kilometres away from the US base [in Qatar]... It felt like an earthquake... then there were massive booms, and when I looked outside, it was all these flying stars... they were Iranian missiles."
- Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government - Georgetown University, Qatar
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Kamrava says Iran's retaliatory attacks were 'choreographed'.
This allows all parties a 'face-saving' way of reaching a ceasefire, he says.
"It is fair to say that over the last 12 days, Iran did put up a good fight."
- Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government - Georgetown University, Qatar
"What the Iranian government and the Iranian military can present to its people is the fact that for 12 days it went toe-to-toe with Israel and the United States."
- Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government - Georgetown University, Qatar
But when it comes to what the future holds for the ceasefire and the region, Kamrava says nothing is certain.
"We are left with far more questions than answers."
- Mehran Kamrava, Professor of Government - Georgetown University, Qatar
Scroll up to listen to the full conversation from Good Morning Cape Town.
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