RIYADH: Lebanon has offered a new deal to Israel via a US mediator to end a long-standing maritime dispute between the two nations mainly centered on gas resources, MEED reported, citing an official close to the negotiation.
According to the report, Lebanon told the mediator it could agree to Israel claiming territory where it plans to extract gas soon.
In return, Lebanon wants total control of a Qana offshore field that it had previously only sought part of.
The report further noted the new developments happened when Lebanon’s top leaders met US envoy Amos Hochstein during his Beirut visit on June 13.
Hochstein is expected to convey Lebanon’s demand to Israel, and will get back to Lebanese leaders with a response.
Lebanon and Israel have no diplomatic relations and are separated by a UN-patrolled border.
After the war in 2006, the two countries resumed maritime negotiations in 2020, but that was soon halted after Lebanon questioned the credibility of the map used by the UN.
