Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked the agreement on the maritime border between Israel and Lebanon which was reached by Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Defense Minister Benny Gantz.
Netanyahu said that "behind the backs of the citizens of Israel and the Knesset, Lapid and Gantz surrendered to Hezbollah's blackmail. They are transferring strategic assets of the State of Israel to Hezbollah in a liquidation sale."
According to Netanyahu, "Hezbollah will use the billions from the gas to arm itself with missiles and rockets against the citizens of Israel, and Iran will position itself against Rosh Hanikra and against Israel's gas reserves. This weak and amateur transitional government has no mandate to make such a dangerous decision in the dark, just days before the elections.''
The Qatari TV channel "Al-Arabi" reported that the negotiations for the signing of the maritime border agreement between Israel and Lebanon are in the final stages, and negotiations are now underway to coordinate the official signing event. According to the report, the signing of the agreement between the countries is expected on October 20 in the Naqoura area, near Rosh Hanikra.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun announced on Sunday that ongoing negotiations with Israel over their disputed maritime border and drilling rights, mediated by American officials, have ended and that Lebanon is expecting to receive a final proposal in the coming hours.
"Aoun received a phone call from the American mediator, Amos Hochstein, during which he briefed him on the latest results of the talks," the president's office said, according to Haaretz.
The statement added that Hochstein "will send the final version of the proposal in the next few hours."
The Lebanese government is preparing to review the proposal's final wording and make a final decision.
Israel and Lebanon have been holding US-brokered discussions for the past year, with the aim of reaching an agreement on their maritime border.
There have been major natural gas discoveries off the coasts of both countries during the last decade, and the border dispute has halted gas exploration in an area that has attracted the interest of US energy companies.