By Wassim Seif El Din
BEIRUT (AA) - Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Thursday said that a maritime border demarcation deal with Israel is close to completion.
Following his meeting with Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Bechara Al-Rahi, he said that the deal will help prevent “a definite war in the region.”
Lebanon and Israel have been locked in a dispute over a maritime area of 860 square kilometers (332 square miles), according to maps sent by both countries to the UN in 2011.
The area is rich in natural gas and oil. Starting in 2020, five sessions of indirect negotiations have been held on the issue under UN sponsorship and US mediation, with the latest round held in May 2021.
*Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara