On 11 September, Al Mayadeen revealed that the US envoy for the demarcation of the maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel, Amos Hochstein, provided Beirut with the coordinates of the new maritime borders.

This is reportedly the last point that was negotiated, in preparation for the final offer which will be presented later on in the week.

The Karish gas field is at the center of the ongoing dispute regarding the demarcation of the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel.

Hochstein expressed his “optimism about progress in the negotiation process”, after meeting with Lebanese President Michel Aoun and other officials last week.

The US envoy claims “it will be beneficial to all parties, and I am very optimistic after what I heard during the talks,” adding that “more efforts must be done, and the United States is committed to resolving the outstanding issues to reach an agreement that is in the interest of the Lebanese people.”

According to a source that spoke with The Cradle, Hochstein passed the new coordinates for the maritime line to Lebanese officials, who later passed it on to their technical team.

Recent reports indicate both countries are unlikely to reach an agreeable outcome ahead of Hezbollah’s mid-September deadline.

The Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, recently proclaimed that the resistance group is “standing up in defense of Lebanon’s oil and gas resources.”

Nasrallah says the situation in Lebanon is heading towards something “worse than war,” and that “martyrdom [in a conflict to secure Lebanon’s resources] is better than death from hunger or economic collapse.”