Fears of an escalation on Israel's northern and southern borders

Following the meeting, Hezbollah threatened to attack Israel if it did drill for gas in the disputed waters. 

Hours later, in the early hours of Wednesday morning, a missile research centre inside Syria was bombed from the air.

Israeli sources refused to comment, but the Syrian government blamed Israel for the strike.

The target has been attacked twice previously – in 2013 and 2017 – and Israel may have been sending the Iranians, who are believed to operate the centre together with Hezbollah and the Assad regime, another warning not to go ahead with plans to build new bases and missile factories in Syria and Lebanon.

Meanwhile in Gaza, Hamas leaders warned that Israel had held military exercises for a potential attack and assessed the chances of war at “95 per cent”.

Israeli officials denied that there was any ulterior motive, however IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot warned the cabinet on Sunday in an irregular briefing that unless solutions were found to alleviate both the financial crisis in Gaza and improve the water and energy situation, the chances of escalation would dramatically increase.