President Michel Aoun said Monday that Lebanon won't be lenient as to its natural resources, as Lebanon celebrated its 77th Army Day.

Aoun affirmed his keenness on Lebanon's rights, adding that the aim of the border demarcation talks is to protect Lebanon's natural resources.

U.S. energy mediator Amos Hochstein arrived Sunday in Lebanon carrying a new Israeli proposal regarding the sea border demarcation with Lebanon.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday voiced regret over the clash in the southern border town of Rmeish between Hezbollah members and town residents.

Hezbollah on Sunday aired drone footage of Israeli ships in a disputed gas field in the Mediterranean Sea, highlighting the tension at the center of U.S.-mediated maritime border talks between Lebanon and Israel.

The footage was aired as the U.S. energy envoy, Amos Hochstein, was landing in Beirut to mediate ongoing talks between Lebanon and Israel over their sea borders. Lebanon claims the Karish gas field is disputed territory under ongoing maritime border negotiations, whereas Israel says it lies within its internationally recognized economic waters.

The U.S. State Department on Sunday announced that reaching a solution in the sea border talks between Lebanon and Israel can only be reached through “negotiations and diplomacy,” shortly before the arrival of U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein in Beirut for talks with Lebanese officials.

“Following visits to Paris, Brussels, and Athens to discuss European energy security, Special Presidential Coordinator for the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment Amos Hochstein will travel to Beirut July 31 to discuss sustainable solutions to Lebanon’s energy crisis, including the Biden Administration’s commitment to facilitating negotiations between Lebanon and Israel on the maritime boundary,” the State Dept. said in a statement.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has again commented sarcastically on the issue of the Iranian fuel grant.

Hezbollah members clashed overnight with residents of the southern border town of Rmeish, prompting the army to intervene to contain the situation.

Lebanon has appeared to reject claims by the Ukrainian Embassy in Beirut that a Syrian ship docked in a Lebanese port is carrying Ukrainian grain stolen by Russia, following an inspection by Lebanese customs officials.

A senior Lebanese customs official told The Associated Press that there was "nothing wrong" with the cargo of the Laodicea, which docked in the Lebanese port of Tripoli on Thursday, and that its papers were in order. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Lebanon on Friday issued a statement to clarify why it believes that flour and barley aboard a Syrian-flagged ship docked in Lebanon’s Tripoli had been “stolen” from Ukraine.

“During the Russian occupation, more than 500,000 tons of grain were stolen from the occupied Kherson, Zaporizhia and Mykolaiv region,” it said.

Prime Minister-designate and caretaker PM Najib Mikati on Friday said that he is seeking to “halt the collapse” of the country.

“We need to address a lot of social issues and to organize the living matters and salaries so that we launch the rescue process and revive Lebanon,” Mikati said during his sponsorship of the launch of a touristic campaign in Tripoli.