“War of Oil”: Another Phase of Israeli Offense

Israeli preparations to delimit its so-called economic maritime boundaries are accelerating at a time Lebanon has started officially granting privileges to the drilling of oil and gas in its economic waters.

Translated by: Marwa Haidar

Source: As-Safir Daily

The Israeli government would ratify on Sunday for the first time on its “maritime borders”, after Lebanon had assigned a Norwegian company to conduct a seismic research in its waters.

Lebanon had earlier, last January, filed a document to the United Nations in which it defined its maritime borders.
It has been known that the possible oil fields lie in a nested area between both Lebanon and Palestine, something which may lead to more conflicts between Lebanon and the Israeli occupation government.

For the Israeli side, the decision to delimit the maritime boundaries is considered as a prelude to achieve international recognition of its “maritime borders”.

According to Israeli media, the ratification on what so-called “Israel’s maritime borders” occurs in response to the Lebanese document to the UN.
In other words, the Zionist entity is to file an official compliant to the UN in order to protest against the Lebanese document, a move considered by many commentators as an attempt to deprive Lebanon of its right to drill oil and gas north of occupied Palestine.

Israeli Media also said that the document, presented by Lebanon to UN, indicated that the Lebanese economic waters included the field "Levitan", adding that the defined borders in the document were different from those signed between Lebanon and Cyprus in the 2002 demarcation of the maritime borders treaty.

Lebanese daily as-Safir stated that Preliminary estimates suggest that "Levitan" field includes 300 to 600 billion m³ of gas.

The Israeli resolution considers that “the lack of Israeli response to the Lebanese actions could be interpreted by courts as an implied endorsement”.

Israel considers that the Lebanese reaction on the Zionist entity’s position “could be used as a pretext to continue resistance, particularly Hezbollah officials, who would say that Israel has unilaterally annexed the maritime areas and natural resources of Lebanon". This position had already been announced by Lebanese organization, Israel said further adding that the Lebanese government and Parliament had supported these organizations.

Although Lebanon had already approved last year a law on oil resources in waters without going into the stage of actual implementation, Israel had actually exceeded by loading large companies, like "Noble Energy and its partners," to start digging for drilling and gas extraction.
This company, “Noble Energy and its Partners”, said it have drilled a well in the region "Levitan," which is considered the largest natural gas field in the world in the last decade.

BASSIL: “ISRAEL PLAYING WITH FIRE”
In this context, the Minister of Energy and Water Joubran Bassil described this case as "scientific and subjected to international law", hoping that each side would meet its interests, and stressing that Lebanon would abandon neither his rights in oil nor his maritime borders.

Asked how Lebanon would face a possible Israeli violation, the energy minister said: "Obviously we will prevent any violation. However, in case of violation, Israel will not be the only damaged part, but also large companies that cooperate with it. We, in Lebanon, respect the rights of others, and we don’t want to violate the rights of others, but at the same time, we do not want someone to attack us and we will pursue this matte, knowing that this is a main clause in the ministerial declaration of the government. "

Bassil concluded that it was no one’s interest to create a problem, assuring that the Zionist entity “is playing with fire” by violating Lebanon's maritime borders and oil rights.
“Lebanon will not give up its rights or its borders”, the energy minister was clear.

Nada Raad contributed to this report