US Mediator in Lebanon-Israel Maritime Talks to Arrive in Beirut this Week

US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein speaks at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon August 1, 2022. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein speaks at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon August 1, 2022. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
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US Mediator in Lebanon-Israel Maritime Talks to Arrive in Beirut this Week

US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein speaks at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon August 1, 2022. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein speaks at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon August 1, 2022. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS

Amos Hochstein, the US diplomat mediating talks between Lebanon and Israel over their shared maritime border, will be in Beirut at the end of the week, a statement from Lebanon’s presidential palace said on Sunday.

The statement said Hochstein would be in Lebanon to follow up on discussions with the Lebanese side on the delineation, without providing more details.

Hochstein was last in Beirut in late July for meetings with Lebanese officials.

At the time, a senior Israeli official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said Hochstein would present a new Israeli proposal that "includes a solution that would allow the Lebanese to develop the gas reserves in the disputed area while preserving Israel's commercial rights".

A Lebanese official said the proposal would allow Lebanon to explore the entire Qana Prospect, an area with the potential to hold hydrocarbons which crosses beyond Line 23, a maritime line that was originally Lebanon's demand during negotiations.

Hochstein told local broadcaster LBCI after that trip that he expected exploration would move forward in the area once the companies involved had the "legal and diplomatic certainty" that would result from a deal.

"I remain optimistic that we can make continuous progress as we have over the last several weeks and I look forward to being able to come back to the region to make the final arrangement," Hochstein said.



Gaza Rescuers Say 72 Killed by Israeli Fire

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Gaza Rescuers Say 72 Killed by Israeli Fire

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli fire killed at least 72 people in the Palestinian territory on Thursday, including 21 who had gathered to receive aid in central and southern Gaza.

Updating an earlier figure, civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP the death toll had risen to 72, "due to the ongoing Israeli bombardment on the Gaza Strip since dawn today -- 21 of them were waiting for aid.”

The Israeli army told AFP that troops had fired "warning shots" at "suspects" approaching them in the Netzarim area where the civil defense agency said 15 people were killed waiting for aid, but that it was "not aware of any injured individuals.”