After twelve days of intense strikes between Israel and Iran – punctuated by the United States’ bombing of Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend and Tehran’s performative retaliation – a US-brokered ceasefire appeared to be holding on Tuesday.

The fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran appears to be holding after a rocky start, giving rise to cautious hope it could lead to a longer term peace agreement even as Tehran insisted it would not give up its nuclear program.

With questions mounting over the impact of the U.S. and Israeli onslaught on Iran’s nuclear facilities and military infrastructure, a return to hostilities could be a matter of when, not if.