ZoneFlood

A fascinating book entitled Watershed is available in its entirity online, with many references to the history of Israel and its desire to posess the Litani River of Lebanon. Even in the earliest days of the state, the Litani was considered highly important. From Chapter 8:

It has been apparent to Zionist planners since the early 1900s that water was crucial to the economic vitality of Palestine. For example, Chaim Weizmann pleaded with the British and others to have the Litani River included within the boundaries of Palestine, because he understood the vital nature of this resource to the future of any Jewish state (see Chapter 6 and Figure 11, p. 126). As noted earlier, he was unsuccessful and later complained bitterly that his position was totally undermined by the British (Hof 1985).