Chinese envoy urges all parties to abide by Iran-Israel ceasefire deal

China's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Fu Cong on Tuesday called on all parties to earnestly abide by the Iran-Israel ceasefire deal.

"We hope the ceasefire could hold and could be abided by faithfully by all the parties. No more deceptions this time," he said to the media prior to attending a UN Security Council meeting on Iran nuclear program.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday evening announced that a ceasefire between Iran and Israel would begin around 0400 GMT Tuesday. Both Iran and Israel later confirmed the start of the ceasefire.

On June 13, Israel launched major airstrikes on different areas in Iran, including nuclear and military sites, killing senior commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians. Iran responded by launching several waves of missile and drone attacks on Israel, inflicting casualties and heavy damage.

On Saturday, the U.S. Air Force bombed three Iranian nuclear sites of Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. In retaliation, Iran on Monday targeted U.S. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar with missiles.

China launched a Long March-8A carrier rocket on Tuesday in the southern island province of Hainan, sending a new group of internet satellites into space.

The rocket lifted off at 23:25 (Beijing Time) from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site. It successfully placed the payloads, the 18th group of low-orbit internet satellites, into preset orbit.