What is Project Freedom and why has Donald Trump paused it?

The decision has been described as 'extraordinary'

Well, that's a good question, and you should probably be asking if Trump himself knows what it is too.

Only three days ago (Sunday 3 May), US Central Command announced Project Freedom, a flagship operation led by Donald Trump.

Now, its future already seems in doubt.

So, what is Project Freedom?

Project Freedom is effectively a self-inflicted rescue mission by the United States which will see it pause hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz to help the thousands of ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz due to the war the US started with Iran.

The United Nations estimate that 2,000 ships and 20,000 seafarers have been stuck at sea in the strait since the war began.

On Monday, US Central Command released a statement concerning the operation.

Admiral Brad Cooper (yes genuinely) said: "Vessels currently in the Arabian Gulf represent 87 countries from around the world.

"They are merely neutral and innocent bystanders," it added.

"We've reached out to dozens of ships and shipping companies to encourage traffic flow through the [Strait of Hormuz], consistent with the President's intent to help guide ship safely through the narrow trade corridor.

However, Donald Trump has since paused the project just three days after its inception, a decision which Sky News' US Correspondent David Blevins described as "extraordinary".

Why has Trump paused the project?

It's often hard to read into the mind of an enigma like Donald Trump, but it helps that he has his own social media platform to vomit all his thoughts up onto!

Taking to Truth Social, the US president announced his decision.

In effect, Trump appears to have gotten cold feet over ending the US' blockade in the strait, potentially out of concerns over what a fully open Strait of Hormuz would do to the cards he holds.

As per the BBC, some Iranian news outlets are already framing the pause as a victory for Iran.

A fragile ceasefire

The pause comes after both warring sides allegedly attacked each other in the Strait of Hormuz during the ceasefire period.

Iran claimed to have hit a US warship with two missiles, which Central Command denied, while Trump said the US had struck seven Iranian "fast boats".

Yesterday, Iran's chief negotiator and parliamentary speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf accused the US of breaching the ceasefire.

This ultimately led to the announcement of the pausing of the operation by the end of Tuesday.