19:30
Lebanon has registered 3,518 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. Fifty more people have died, bringing the total death toll to 5,230
13:50
“We are heading toward a blackout” unless Parliament approves an advance payment to EDL, caretaker Energy Minister Raymond Ghajar has said after a meeting with President Michel Aoun. FPM MPs last week asked for an urgent law to be passed granting EDL LL1.5 trillion to import fuel
11:52
Caretaker Interior Minister Mohamed Fehmi has told VDL News that Lebanon’s security forces are drained and unable to perform “90% of our duties.” Fehmi’s comments follow army chief Gen. Joseph Aoun’s remarks that soldiers are “suffering and starving” amid the economic crisis
21:19
For the third time this year, the Economy Ministry has raised the cost of subsidized bread. Large bundles will still cost LL2,500, but shrink from 930 to 870 grams, a 6.9% price hike per gram. Small bundles will shrink and cost less, resulting in about the same price per gram
19:54
Lebanon has registered 3,581 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. Forty-six more people have died, bringing the total death toll to 5,180
19:34
The municipality of Beirut, along with the Economy Ministry, has announced plans to crack down on private generator owners who are not following pricing rules or the requirement to install meters to measure consumption for billing purposes
19:18
The Lebanese Army says it has completed distribution of the LL150 billion allocated to date to compensate the owners of homes damaged in the Beirut port explosion. A total of 20,297 housing units have received compensation, about a third of the 62,087 the army assessed as damaged
18:17
As part of the ongoing crackdown on parallel market money changers, State Security raided shops and homes of unlicensed exchangers in Mount Lebanon and the Bekaa, arresting a number of them and seizing “large sums” of currency along with computers and cellphones, the agency said
17:21
The Lebanese Forces and Free Patriotic Movement traded barbs today, with the FPM accusing the LF of “lying and political hypocrisy” after the LF said in a statement that it was not behind the blocking of roads by protesters as some FPM and Hezbollah-affiliated sites had implied
17:01
Hundreds of people gathered in Saida’s Martyrs’ Square and are marching through the streets in protest against the deteriorating economic situation and living conditions, local media report
15:22
The Association of Public Administration Employees has announced plans for a strike Friday to coincide with the scheduled parliamentary session. The association said in a statement that a public employee’s “salary is no longer sufficient for his minimum living requirements”
13:45
Firass Abiad, the director of Rafik Hariri University Hospital, has warned on Twitter of “tough times ahead” as coronavirus infections and critical cases are on the rise once again. Lebanon reported 3,939 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, the highest number in more than a month
13:37
MP Ali Hassan Khalil (Amal/Marjayoun-Hasbaya) said on Twitter he has proposed a law to give every member of the army and security forces a monthly payment of LL1 million for a six-month period. Army Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun this week said soldiers are suffering and starving
12:28
Lebanon’s Parliament is set to meet Friday with a draft agenda of only three items including a $246 million loan from the World Bank to help Lebanese authorities set up a social safety net for impoverished families
11:23
Lead investigative judge into the Beirut port explosion Tarek Bitar has issued judicial writs aiming to uncover “how the ammonium nitrate was purchased, the owners of the shipment and the companies involved,” the NNA reports. Bitar was appointed to the job just over two weeks ago
08:13
As protesters attempt to close off various roads across the country for the ninth day in a row, the army this morning said in a statement that it has begun removing blockades and reopening roads “in order to preserve the safety of citizens”
20:43
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri returned from the United Arab Emirates to Beirut this evening, the NNA reports
20:27
Comedian Shaden Fakih said she was informed that her appointment for questioning at the Cybercrimes Bureau, which had been scheduled for Thursday, has now been postponed indefinitely, purportedly due to a scheduling conflict. Activists had been calling for protests to support her
20:22
Delegations from Hezbollah and from Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai met and discussed the need to speed up government formation and revive the economy, Hezbollah said in a statement. They agreed to continue talks about Rai’s calls for “positive neutrality” at future meetings
19:53
After being forced to close over the weekend due to overcrowding, the Mzaar ski resort will reopen Friday, the municipality of Kfardebian announced, with police checking Impact platform permits. Today, Lebanon recorded its highest number of new COVID-19 cases since January
19:35
Lebanon has registered 3,939 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the highest count since Jan. 23. Forty-five more people have died, bringing the total death toll to 5,134
19:11
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today in Abu Dhabi, where they discussed Lebanon’s government formation process and the need to “intensify the efforts of the international community to solve the Syrian crisis,” Hariri tweeted
17:21
The NGO Anera announced it has secured funding for 40,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to be distributed to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, covering 20,000 people. This is in addition to 18,000 doses provided to Palestinians by the Lebanese state, the NGO said
17:04