Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday rejected what he called the election of a “settlements president.”

Turning to the issue of the new government, al-Rahi called for the formation of “an inclusive rather than a partisan government.”

The French intervened following the latest Israeli rejection in the gas talks with Lebanon and Paris told Beirut through PM-designate Najib Mikati that "Israel does not intend to escalate," al-Akhbar newspaper quoted prominent sources as saying.

While the Israeli "political shelling" against the draft gas agreement with Lebanon has "calmed down," Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab has received from U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein a letter containing Israel's remarks to the draft and Israel's comments on the proposed Lebanese amendments, al-Akhbar daily said on Saturday.

The head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, has told Israel’s security cabinet that, according to his evaluation, Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah wants the gas deal with Israel to be finalized and “does not want a military battle with Israel at the moment,” Israel’s Channel 12 has reported.

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz for his part told the cabinet that the agreement should be signed prior to the extraction of gas from the Karish offshore gas field.

The French and the Americans are exerting huge pressure on Lebanon and are seeking a way to convince Beirut to “climb down from the tree,” Israel’s Channel 12 has reported.

Israel’s Kan TV meanwhile said that the next two days will be crucial in the attempt to revive the gas deal between Lebanon and Israel, after the Israelis rejected Lebanon’s amendments to the draft deal presented by U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein.

President Michel Aoun announced Friday that “Lebanon is awaiting the outcome of the contacts that U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein is carrying out with the Israelis, in order to specify the course of the indirect negotiations for the demarcation of the southern maritime border.”

Aoun’s remarks come a day after Israel rejected Lebanon’s amendments to Hochstein’s latest proposal.

U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein will on Friday deliver written Israeli remarks over his proposal to Lebanon’s deputy parliament speaker Elias Bou Saab, LBCI TV reported.

“This confirms that the negotiations between the Lebanese and Israeli sides are still ongoing and have move from the phase of political negotiations to the phase of studying the legal and technical terms in a calm atmosphere away from tensions,” LBCI added.

Speaker Nabih Berri has said that Lebanon’s remarks over the sea border demarcation proposal presented by U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein are “minor,” hours after Israel rejected them through an unnamed senior official.

“Lebanon does not deal with media leaks, but rather with facts that are supposed to be carried by U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein, with whom our contacts are exclusively taking place,” Berri said in remarks to Asharq al-Awsat newspaper published Friday.

Israel’s security and political affairs cabinet has authorized “preemptive” strikes on Hezbollah if Israel determines that the Iran-backed Lebanese group is preparing to launch an attack related to the maritime gas dispute.

In its session on Thursday, the cabinet said it authorizes “the possibility of launching preemptive offensive operations” should Israel obtain “credible information” that Hezbollah is “preparing to wage an attack,” Lebanon’s pro-Hezbollah newspaper al-Akhbar reported on Friday.

ARAB ART FAIR, the First Affordable Art Fair in the region, has announced its dates for 2022. The fair will return from November 2nd to 6th, 2022 in the Yacht Club Beirut, Zaitunay Bay.

ARAB ART FAIR offers an opportunity for Art galleries and independent Artists in the region to showcase their artworks to thousands of enthusiastic art lovers.