Washington Predicts ‘Difficult Moments’ during Implementation of Lebanese-Israeli Agreement

An Israeli naval vessel conducts a patrol off Ras al-Naqoura on the Lebanese-Israeli border (AFP)
An Israeli naval vessel conducts a patrol off Ras al-Naqoura on the Lebanese-Israeli border (AFP)
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Washington Predicts ‘Difficult Moments’ during Implementation of Lebanese-Israeli Agreement

An Israeli naval vessel conducts a patrol off Ras al-Naqoura on the Lebanese-Israeli border (AFP)
An Israeli naval vessel conducts a patrol off Ras al-Naqoura on the Lebanese-Israeli border (AFP)

One day after Lebanon and Israel reached a draft-agreement on the demarcation of their maritime borders, senior US officials said they expect “other difficult moments” during the implementation of the agreement.

The officials stressed that negotiations did not include consultations with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

The agreement was described as a “historic breakthrough” settling a decades-old maritime border dispute over the control of resources along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean.

According to the final text of the draft dated Oct. 10, 2022 and leaked by an Israeli journalist, the said agreement shall enter into force on the date the United States Government sends a communication containing confirmation of each party’s consent to the provisions of this agreement.

The final text also stated that on the day on which such notification is sent, Lebanon and Israel will simultaneously send to the United Nations identical coordinates defining the location of the maritime boundary.

A senior US official told a group of journalists that the US-led mediation in the maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel “began more than ten years ago” under President Barack Obama and then Vice President Joe Biden, and did not lead to any result until 2020 when the two sides announced the cessation of negotiations.

Biden’s administration resumed its mediation in the fall of 2021, “in pursuit of (...) a paradigm shift that would allow for a breakthrough.”

The senior US official referred to two calls that Biden had on Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Lebanese President Michel Aoun, stressing that the move would be in the interest of Lebanon, which “is suffering from a major economic crisis.”

“Without addressing the energy and electricity crisis, it is impossible to see any hope of economic recovery,” he said, stressing that this agreement would provide Lebanon with “new possibilities for foreign direct investment”, especially in the energy sector.

He also pointed out that Israel was “very successful” in developing large gas and hydrocarbon resources in the Mediterranean, noting the agreement with Lebanon “will provide it with a kind of security and stability.”

The US official stated, however, that the negotiations “were not easy,” expecting “other difficult moments” during the implementation of the agreement. He added that the US “will continue to provide its assistance in facilitating any future discussions.”

In response to a question about the impact of the threats made by Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah on the negotiations and the agreement, the senior US official said that “the Karish field is not in the disputed area,” stressing that the negotiations “did not take place in light of (…) threats.”

He expected the two countries to sign the agreement “as soon as possible,” adding that the negotiations that were conducted under American mediation did not include discussions with Hezbollah.

Asked about the Arab Gas Pipeline agreement, he said the US officials believe that “importing gas from Egypt through Jordan, up to Lebanon, is a positive development for the country.”

“We will conduct a final review in the United States to make sure that [the project] is in line with the American sanctions,” the US official said, referring to Caesar’s Act against Syria.

He also expressed his “confidence that we can deliver gas to Lebanon on a fairly rapid basis if the country actually takes the reform steps that it has committed to.”



UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)

UN officials on Monday asked for $6 billion for Sudan this year from donors to help ease what they called the world's worst ever hunger catastrophe and the mass displacement of people brought on by civil war.

The UN appeal represents a rise of more than 40% from last year's for Sudan at a time when aid budgets around the world are under strain, partly due to a pause in funding announced by US President Donald Trump last month that has affected life-saving programs across the globe.

The UN says the funds are necessary because the impact of the 22-month war between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) - that has already displaced a fifth of its population and stoked severe hunger among around half its population - looks set to worsen.

World Food Program chief Cindy McCain, speaking via video to a room full of diplomats in Geneva, said: "Sudan is now the epicenter of the world's largest and most severe hunger crisis ever."

She did not provide figures, but Sudan's total population currently stands at about 48 million people. Among previous world famines, the Bengal Famine of 1943 claimed between 2 million and 3 million lives, according to several estimates, while millions are believed to have died in the Great Chinese Famine of 1959-61.

Famine conditions have been reported in at least five locations in Sudan, including displacement camps in Darfur, a UN statement said, and this was set to worsen with continued fighting and the collapse of basic services.

"This is a humanitarian crisis that is truly unprecedented in its scale and its gravity and it demands a response unprecedented in scale and intent," UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said.

One of the famine-stricken camps was attacked by the RSF last week as the group tries to tighten its grip on its Darfur stronghold.

While some aid agencies say they have received waivers from Washington to provide aid in Sudan, uncertainty remains on the extent of coverage for providing famine relief.

The UN plan aims to reach nearly 21 million people within the country, making it the most ambitious humanitarian response so far for 2025, and requires $4.2 billion - the rest being for those displaced by the conflict.