Tehran, April 8 -- A fragile peace now prevails in West Asia after the US and Iran agreed on a two week ceasefire even as they look to sign a more long term agreement. However, the announcement of a pause in the conflict after 39 day caught many by surprise.

Elham Kadkhodaee, Assistant Professor at the West Asian Studies at the University of Tehran, said while Iran was prepared to carry on with resitsance the US kept on changing its goalpost, starting with regime change to targeting Iran's nuclear program.

"Well, first of all, it was a surprise for everyone in Iran. We really were prepared to go on with the resistance for any amount of time that was necessary. People really were not expecting the announcement of a ceasefire. In terms of...