Lebanon, Israel closer to deal in maritime border dispute

By BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanese officials and a U.S. envoy say Lebanon and Israel are getting closer to reaching a deal in a maritime border dispute between the two neighbors. A U.S. envoy mediating between Lebanon and Israel said after talks in Beirut on Monday that he looks forward to coming back to the region again and making final arrangements. Lebanon’s Deputy Parliament Speaker Elias Bou Saab told reporters that the atmosphere is positive and the gap of disagreements narrowing.  Lebanon and Israel have been officially at war since Israel’s creation in 1948 and both countries have claimed for years some 860 square kilometers, about 330 square miles, of the Mediterranean Sea.