Lebanese Ambassador to the U.N. Amal Mudallali has filed a memo to U.N. chief Antonio Guterres and Security Council President Geraldine Byrne Nason over the reports that Israel has granted the Halliburton company contracts to drill gas and oil wells in a disputed offshore area.

In the memo, filed at the instructions of Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, Lebanon asks the Security Council to “verify that the drilling works do not lie in an area disputed by Lebanon and Israel, in order to avoid any infringement on the rights and sovereignty of Lebanon.”

Lebanon has also asked the Security Council to “prevent any future excavation works in the disputed areas to avoid any steps that might represent a threat to international peace and security.”

http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/284155-lebanon-asks-u-n-to-forbid-israel-from-oil-drilling-in-disputed-area