DAILY SCOPE: Lebanese Oil Reservoirs Promising, Technical Committee to Intervene in Internet Scandal Investigations
Local Editor
Lebanese newspapers said on Wednesday that the dialogue failed once again in reaching an understanding on the electoral law, and focused on the illegal internet scandal as the judiciary ordered further technical investigations in the case.
The daily as well touched on the oil exploration file, which has been a sensitive matter that can be subject to ‘Israeli' theft.
Al-JOMHOURIA: Surveys Show Southern Oil Reservoirs Promising, But Under ‘Israeli' Threats
At the time Lebanon is still busy with its paralysis and remains inactive in following up on the oil exploration file, "Israel" seems to be about to start its oil production, which in its turn threatens Lebanon's oil and gas in the areas where the fields overlap.
Al-Jomhouria newspaper reported on Wednesday that Lebanon's petroleum authority has obtained "seismic" surveys which show that the oil reservoirs in the southern area are promising, especially blocs 8 and 9. The surveys were carried out by one of the foreign companies tasked since 2002 to carry out that task.
A six-member petroleum authority has analyzed the data and submitted it to top officials in the country, including parliament speaker Nabih Berri and PM Tammam Salam. the report contained new information which proves the presence of oil in the sea and mainly in bloc number 8, which the authority had no information about before that.
This has caused alarm among authorities, who warned that ‘Israel' would take advantage of this wealth, particularly where the oil and gas fields overlap.
Berri had stressed on Monday that the "Israeli" government is exerting pressure on some of the international oil extraction companies so that these would not invest in the Lebanese blocs, just like it has been so adherent to its occupation of the Shebaa farms and preserving its water interests. He noted that a study shows there are shared oil reserves with "Israel", particularly in the Blocs number 8 and 9 located south.
AN-NAHAR: Judge Orders Technical Committee to Intervene in Internet Scandal Investigations
Concerning the illegal internet scandal which has become almost unforgotten if it were not for the tweets of MP Walid Jumblatt that keep reminding of the issue, An-Nahar newspaper reported that the judge following up on the case has tasked a technical committee to intervene in the investigations, especially after he was subject to tremendous political pressure to close the file and prevent any revelations from surfacing.
The Lebanese government has been busy investigating illegal internet companies for the past couple of weeks. The scandal includes illegal large communication devices and towers installed in several areas across Lebanon and a 40GB per second bandwith bought from Turkey and Cyprus and equivalent to 1/3 of the bandwith set by the Telecom ministry.
Also, the internet scandal includes a huge number of minor and major companies that have overpassed laws and regulations and justified taking internet provided by Cyprus and Turkey, saying that the demand for internet services has been increasing in light of scarcity of state services.
AL-BINAA: Joint Committees to Meet Today, Unlikely to Make Change
Al-Binaa newspaper said that the joint committees that are set to convene today will not bring about any new decisions or measures in terms of the electoral law, which has become completely in the hands of the national dialogue.
In late May, the Parliament's joint committee adjourned discussions on the country' electoral law to next week over sharp differences between rivals, as parties remained adamant on their positions.
In April, Berri said he would not call for a parliamentary session before joint parliamentary committees complete their discussions over a new electoral law to replace the 1960 law. The 1960 law was used in the last parliamentary polls in 2009. Most Christian parties argue that it devalues Christian votes in some parts of the country where they constitute a minority.
Since May 2013, Parliament has extended its mandate twice. Lawmakers argued when they extended their term again in November 2014 that security concerns prevented the staging of polls, amid the tense security situation in the country at the time.
Source: al-Ahed news
Comments
