Aoun Hints at Lebanese 'Options' if Israel Refuses to Resume Border Demarcation Negotiations

 President Michel Aoun meets with the US mediator of indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, Ambassador John Desrocher. (NNA)
President Michel Aoun meets with the US mediator of indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, Ambassador John Desrocher. (NNA)
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Aoun Hints at Lebanese 'Options' if Israel Refuses to Resume Border Demarcation Negotiations

 President Michel Aoun meets with the US mediator of indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, Ambassador John Desrocher. (NNA)
President Michel Aoun meets with the US mediator of indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, Ambassador John Desrocher. (NNA)

Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun hinted at “many options” for Lebanon, if the Israelis did not respond to efforts to revive the negotiations to demarcate the maritime borders, asking the US mediator to “push towards fair and honest talks without preconditions.”

Held under the auspices and supervision of the United Nations, the indirect negotiations between Lebanon and Israel were suspended in May, following a fifth session held after a US intervention. But the discussions clashed with Israeli preconditions that toppled the sixth session, which was supposed to take place on May 5.

On Monday, Aoun met with the US mediator of indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, Ambassador John Desrocher, who arrived in Beirut before a visit to Tel Aviv.

The Lebanese president stressed his country’s keenness to continue the indirect negotiations in Naqoura with US mediation, in order to reach an understanding that preserves the rights of the two sides based on international laws.

Aoun also asked Desrocher to push towards fair and impartial negotiations, without preconditions. He expressed hope that the US ambassador’s efforts would yield positive results, taking into account the new government change in Israel, which would require additional efforts to avoid further delays in the talks.

While he stressed “openness to the proposals presented within the framework of full Lebanese sovereignty on land and at sea,” Aoun noted that Lebanon has “several options in the event that the Israelis did not respond to the efforts made to move negotiations forward.”



Iraqis Stranded in Beirut Face Black Market for Return Tickets

Iraqi citizens wait outside Iraqi Airways office in Beirut (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Iraqi citizens wait outside Iraqi Airways office in Beirut (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Iraqis Stranded in Beirut Face Black Market for Return Tickets

Iraqi citizens wait outside Iraqi Airways office in Beirut (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Iraqi citizens wait outside Iraqi Airways office in Beirut (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Iraqi Airways office in Beirut has become a daily destination for stranded Iraqi citizens desperately seeking tickets and empty seats on flights home, after Baghdad suspended air travel amid escalating regional tensions sparked by Israel’s assault on Iran.

From tourists who had planned family vacations, to patients seeking treatment or workers on business trips, hundreds of Iraqis have been stuck in Lebanon for over a week with no clear path home.

The Iraqi Ministry of Transport halted air traffic across all airports last week—except Basra International Airport, which resumed limited daytime operations on Sunday—as a precaution following the Israeli strike on Iran, a move mirrored by other regional countries impacted by the conflict.

Iraq’s airport authority said it had set up an emergency operations room and designated Basra as the sole return point for citizens stranded abroad. The decision has triggered flight bottlenecks and chaos, with Basra now receiving planes from multiple countries.

“It’s a mess,” said Mustafa, one of the many Iraqis stranded in Beirut. “We were supposed to fly back with my family of six, but our flight was suddenly cancelled, and we were given no details about an alternative.”

Efforts by Asharq Al-Awsat to reach the Iraqi embassy in Beirut and airline officials for clarification went unanswered.

Video footage circulating online shows chaotic scenes at Beirut airport, where frustrated Iraqi travelers jostle and argue over limited tickets to Basra.

“There’s no transparency,” Mustafa added. “The plane can hold 280 passengers, but only 60 official tickets are sold. The rest are offered by black market brokers for as much as $1,200 each. These tickets should have been issued by the airline for free.”

For a 60-year-old Iraqi woman who came to Beirut for medical treatment, the wait has turned into a painful ordeal.

“I was scheduled to return to Baghdad three days ago after finishing my treatment,” she told Asharq Al-Awsat while sitting outside the Iraqi Airways office. “I’ve been coming here every day since, waiting for help. I’m ill and in pain—this delay is unbearable.”

On Tuesday, Reuters quoted Ali Jumah, Iraq’s civil aviation representative at Basra airport, as saying: “The airport is now open from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. by order of the Ministry of Transport to help evacuate Iraqis, Arabs, and foreigners. Despite the airport’s limited capacity, our staff and crisis cell are working around the clock.”

The Ministry of Transport confirmed it had deployed Iraqi Airways to operate international routes via Basra to repatriate stranded travelers, regardless of nationality.

The ministry said 19 evacuation flights were conducted on Monday and Tuesday alone, and it is prepared to increase capacity to bring back all Iraqis abroad.

Iraq has nine civilian airports, with Baghdad International Airport handling around two million passengers in 2021, making it the country’s busiest. Basra ranks fourth by passenger volume.