There has been a decade-old maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel. Now the two neighbors are getting closer to reaching a deal. Lebanon and Israel have been officially at war since Israel’s creation in 1948, and both countries claim some 860 square kilometers of the Mediterranean Sea. Amos Hochstein has been mediating between the two neighbors, and he expressed optimism after his meetings with Lebanon’s president, caretaker prime minister and parliament speaker. Lebanon is in bad need of an agreement as it hopes to exploit offshore gas reserves to try and alleviate what has become the worst economic crisis in its modern history. Pray for a more united approach to have anticipated progress to reach a settlement. Pray for the Lebanese to seek God’s help to enjoy new beginnings and salvation in Jesus Christ (The Bible, Job 8:7).

Source:

https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-israel-lebanon-beirut-ce278e1f4cbfee6571b074cb49f8d8cb

The US government releases an annual Trafficking in Person report which explores steps taken to stop human trafficking and punish those responsible in 188 nations. The report breaks the nations into three tiers with the third tier reserved for nations that fail to meet minimum standards and are showing no effort to meet those standards. Brunei was added to the list of third-tier nations this year. As human trafficking in Southeast Asia got worse in the last year, pray for the nations in this third tier to be convicted of their need to address this terrible industry. Pray for a turnaround in Brunei. Praise God that He values all human life and that it is He who gives each of us breath and life (The Bible, Job 33:4).

Source: US Adds Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei to Human Trafficking Blacklist (The Diplomat)