Israeli negotiators tasked with resolving the ongoing dispute with Lebanon on the maritime border near the Israeli gas field Karish have been exploring the possibility of having the Diplomatic-Security Cabinet hold a secret vote on any final deal before it is presented to the public, Israel Hayom has learned from sources who are close to the negotiations.
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Under official government procedures, an international agreement with a foreign country must be submitted for to Knesset by the relevant cabinet minister for a two-week review process, after which the government holds a vote on it. However, in rare instances, the rules provide for a mechanism that allows that minister to withhold this information from the general public and instead submit it to the Diplomatic-Security Cabinet without having the Knesset review it or the full government ministerial panel vote on it.
The rules stipulate that "the prime minister may decide that there are special circumstances involving national security of foreign relations that require an international treaty be presented to the ministerial committee for national security [the Diplomatic-Security Cabinet] rather than the government."
The sources told Israel Hayom that government officials are also considering redefining the negotiations on the maritime border between Israel and Lebanon so that they would determine the "marking of a border" rather than the "setting a border" in order to avoid triggering the relevant law that would require a national referendum on changing that status of Israel's sovereignty in areas under its control.
The talks between Israel and Lebanon over the border that would define the economic waters of each side are held under the auspices of an American mediator. Israeli and US officials have confirmed in recent days that an agreement is close and that it would likely have Israel drop a significant part of its demands regarding the exact delineation it had proposed. This would let Lebanon have a major part of another potential gas field in the disputed area.
Former Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon, who is expected to be elected to the Knesset as part of the Likud candidate list in the Nov. 1 election, told Israel Hayom that Prime Minister Yair Lapid's approach to the negotiations is tantamount to an "instrument of surrender to Hezbollah." According to Danon, "Lapid knows that Israelis do not support him on this, and that is why he has been trying to secretly push an agreement using legal maneuvers with unprecedented measures that would bypass the Knesset and the public. We could wake up one day and discover that Lapid had already signed a deal with Lebanon, handed over a gas field worth billions of dollars, and set a dangerous precedent for future negotiations on Israel's maritime borders. Lapid must stop now and avoid this shameful surrender; a Likud-led government will be engaged on this matter only with public legitimacy."
The Prime Minister's Office told Israel Hayom in response to the report that "there is no confirmation on this information because at this point there is no agreement; when we have updates we will provide them."
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