Good morning. Uncertainty once again reigns in the Middle East. The uneasy ceasefire between the US and Iran threatened to disintegrate after Donald Trump launched an initiative – dubbed “Project Freedom” – to help thousands of sailors stranded in the Gulf by the war to pass through the strait of Hormuz. To Iran, the announcement was a cynical provocation. Flurries of fighting restarted as Iran sought to maintain its grip on the critical passageway out of the region. However overnight, the US president declared via social media that his project had been “paused for a short period of time” to see if an agreement with Iran could be finalised, but added that the blockade of ports would remain in place. For today’s First Edition, I spoke with Julian Borger , the Guardian’s senior international correspondent, about Trump’s strategy and the likelihood of a return to war. But first, this morning’s headlines.…