Hezbollah terror chief Hassan Nasrallah on Friday issued a fresh threat over the offshore Karish gas field partly claimed by Lebanon, warning Israel against beginning extraction amid maritime border talks between Jerusalem and Beirut.
In a televised speech for the Shiite commemoration of Arbaeen, Nasrallah noted upcoming tests at Karish, with the platform slated to be connected to Israel’s national gas grid in the coming days. According to Nasrallah, Hezbollah “sent a very strong message” concerning the tests but Israel clarified they would not involve extracting gas from Karish.
“The red line to us is that there should not be extraction from Karish,” he said, according to the Naharnet news site.
He said Hezbollah was “giving a real chance” to the US-brokered negotiations, which are aimed at demarcating a maritime border between the countries to allow for offshore drilling in disputed areas.
Lebanon claims part of Karish, which Israel says lies in its waters and is not part of the disputed area subject to ongoing negotiations. The two countries remain technically at war.
“We are following up on the negotiations and all our eyes are on Karish and our missiles are locked on Karish,” Nasrallah said. “As long as extraction has not started, there is a chance for solutions.”
“We will not allow that oil and gas be extracted from the disputed Karish field before Lebanon obtains its rightful demands,” he added.
Energean, a London-listed company that has the license to develop Karish, said September 8 that it was “on track to deliver [the] first gas from the Karish development project within weeks.”
On Friday, the Energy Ministry said it “was preparing to connect the Karish reservoir to the Israeli system…. As part of the next stage of the project, planned for the upcoming days, the rig and natural transmission system from the rig to the national network will be tested.”
Officials said the test would be conducted by transferring gas from Israel to the rig.
Hezbollah has repeatedly threatened further attacks if the gas extraction goes ahead, after launching four unarmed drones toward Karish in July.
Top security Israeli officials have responded to Hezbollah’s threats, with Defense Minister Benny Gantz warning Thursday that Lebanon will suffer dire consequences if the Iran-backed terror organization torpedoes the maritime talks.
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