Speaker Nabih Berri said that the United States notified Lebanon of Israel's readiness to discuss a controversial issue of defining the land and sea borders between the two countries, Berri told Russian Sputnik news agency on Wednesday.

In light of the controversy surrounding a “secretive” presidential decree granting nationality to dozens including Syrian investors close to the Syrian regime, several Arab and foreign embassies have requested information about whether some of the figures are under international and Gulf sanctions, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday.

The daily said the “embassies have shown special interest in the decree in the last 24 hours. They indirectly asked for information about it to know whether the individuals granted citizenship are linked to international and Gulf sanctions.”

Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri announced on Tuesday during a Iftar in Beirut that the government to be formed will be comprised of 30 ministers.

MP Jamil Sayyed, a spy chief once jailed in connection to the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri gave testimony Tuesday to the international tribunal tasked with trying the crime.

Lebanese politicians and ordinary citizens alike are fuming over a secretive presidential decree granting nationality to dozens of people, allegedly including Syrian investors close to the Damascus regime.

A Russian force that deployed on Syria's border with Lebanon has reportedly withdrawn and been replaced by Syrian troops.

The Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV, which has reporters throughout Syria, says the Russian force withdrew Tuesday from the border area on the outskirts of the town of Qusair, a stronghold of the Lebanese Hibzullah group. Russia and the Iran-backed Hizbullah are both fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces.

As part of coordinating efforts to counter a controversial naturalization decree granting Lebanese citizenship to foreigners, lawyers of three political parties met on Tuesday at the Kataeb headquarters in al-Saifi, the National News Agency said on Tuesday.

Lawyers from the Kataeb party, Lebanese Forces and Progressive Socialist Party held talks to discuss the law that is yet to be disclosed.

Israel said on Tuesday that U.S. back-channel negotiations between the Lebanese and Israeli sides to solve the dispute over maritime borders have delayed exploration for oil and gas.”

Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said that “suggestion of new ideas proposed through the US back-channel talks to mediate a maritime dispute between Israel and Lebanon have complicated operations for gas and oil exploration.”

Israeli airstrikes have reportedly hit military positions of Hizbullah in Syria’s western region of Qalamoun, Sky News Arabia reported on Tuesday.

The demarcation of Lebanon’s southern border was the focal point of a meeting held Monday at Baabda Palace between President Michel Aoun,Speaker Nabih Berri, PM-designate Saad Hariri, General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim and head of the Lebanese military delegation participating in the tripartite meetings held in Naqoura Brigadier General Amin Farahat and Brigadier General Ruli Fares.

The outcome of ongoing negotiations conducted between Lebanon and Israel through the United Nations was presented in order to address 13 disputed border points of the "Blue Line", al-Joumhouria daily said.