THE Iranian military’s joint command said on Monday it was halting its offensive operations, after Israel and Iran exchanged fire in their first attacks since the US struck a ceasefire with Tehran two months ago. The renewed hostilities threatened to drag the Middle East back into a full-scale war. Officials have been unable to turn the April ceasefire into a deal to permanently end the conflict. During the truce, Iran has maintained its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz - a crucial passage for the world’s oil and natural gas whose closure was the primary reason global fuel prices skyrocketed. Israel has continued to strike Hezbollah, Iran’s ally in Lebanon, and pushed deeper into that country. And on Monday, Yemen’s Houthi rebels, another Iranian ally, fired at Israel and warned they would target Israel-affiliated ships in the Red Sea.