Israel sea border deal

Lebanon's President Michel Aoun said that the cash-strapped country has approved a U.S.-mediated maritime border deal with Israel.

Lebanon and Israel both claim around 860 square kilometers of the Mediterranean Sea that are home to offshore gas fields. The agreement will be forwarded to the Knesset, or parliament, for a two-week review period before a final Cabinet vote. Lebanon hopes that demarcating maritime borders will pave the way for gas exploration to help lift it out of its crippling economic crisis.

The agreement stipulates that the disputed waters would be divided along a line straddling the "Qana" natural gas field. Gas production would be based on the Lebanese side, but Israel would be compensated for gas extracted from its side of the line.