An Israeli think tank filed a petition to the High Court of Justice on Wednesday after the government said it would not submit a deal with Lebanon over a maritime border dispute to a national referendum in the event such an understanding is reached, Israeli media reported on Thursday
The non-profit Kohelet Policy Forum filed the petition to prevent the cabinet from unilaterally approving an accord, claiming that the government would be in violation of Israel’s Basic Laws — which have special constitutional status — if it did not submit the question of ceding maritime territory to Lebanon as part of an agreement to a public vote.
“This is a dramatic decision from every perspective — security, economic, and policy. It is very problematic that the government without a Knesset would accept it in a period such as this contrary to the Basic Law: Referendum,” Kohelet posted in a tweet, in reference to the government’s caretaker capacity in the lead up to the November 1 election.
Israel and Lebanon have been engaged for over a year in rare US-brokered talks aimed at resolving a dispute over rights to offshore fields and both sides are said to be nearing an agreement.
According to an Israeli law passed in 2014, any plan to cede territory within the borders of Israel must either be approved by the Knesset with a majority of 61 votes and then by the public at a referendum or passed by the legislative body by a supermajority of 80 votes.
US envoy , Amos Hochstein who is brokering the deal , said earlier this month that he was “optimistic” about the deal, and Lebanon’s foreign minister late last month said he was more bullish than ever about negotiations.
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