Lebanon Ready to Confront Any Israeli Aggression at All Costs

The Lebanese army has reaffirmed its readiness to confront the “Israeli aggression” by any means at its disposal if the ongoing disputes and already tense relations between the neighbors escalate into an armed confrontation.

“I reaffirm again our categorical rejection of the Israeli enemy infringing on Lebanon’s sovereignty and its sacred right to exploit all its economic resources,” General Joseph Aoun said, as quoted by the Lebanese army. “The army will not spare any method available to confront any Israeli aggression, whatever that costs,” RT reported.

Earlier this month, Lebanon signed its first contracts to explore two offshore zones for oil and gas. One of the parcels included exploration rights to the so-called Block 9, a triangle off the coast that is around 860 square kilometers–which Israel claims the rights to.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman described the move as “very provocative,” contending that Block 9 falls under Tel Aviv’s sovereignty. As Israel continues to assert its claim over the continental shelf, a consortium of international energy companies, including Italy’s Eni, France’s Total and Russia’s Novatek, have already received approval from Beirut to explore the two blocks off the coast.

Last week, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah expressed readiness to attack Israel’s oil and gas operations in the Levant basin off the Mediterranean if asked to do so by the Lebanese Defense Council.

Amid the escalating border dispute, US diplomats have been trying to mediate between the two adversaries. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited Lebanon last Thursday. Meanwhile, Assistant Secretary of State David Satterfield is working with the Israeli side to avert any cross-border military action. However, Hezbollah has firmly rejected any US efforts in the settlement with Nasrallah, stressing that the “oil wealth is for all the Lebanese.”

Amid the ongoing dispute, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned about the possibility of a direct confrontation between Israel and Lebanon, noting that “sometimes a spark is enough to unleash this kind of a conflict.”