Lebanon's banks will remain closed indefinitely after rejecting a proposed government security plan, a senior official with the country's commercial banks association said on Thursday, amid a wave of protests and heists targeting its failing financial system.

The Association of Banks in Lebanon initially announced a three-day strike, after at least seven bank branches were stormed last week, where assailants demanded they withdraw their trapped savings. Among them is Sali Hafez, who broke into a Beirut bank branch with a fake pistol and retrieved some $13,000 in her savings to cover her sister's cancer treatment.

Turkey's currency fell to a record low against the dollar before a central bank meeting on interest rates Thursday.

The lira traded at a low of 18.38 against the dollar, past the previous record low of 18.36 in December, before recovering to about 18.36.

The International Monetary Fund has said the Lebanese government's slowness to implement desperately-needed reforms was exacerbating the country's economic meltdown, even as officials met to discuss an urgent and long-delayed bailout.

The IMF statement followed a three-day visit to Beirut of the fund's representatives to discuss with Lebanese officials the implementation of reforms drawn up under a staff-level agreement between the two sides in April.

U.S. President Joe Biden announced Wednesday another $2.9 billion for a fund aimed at helping to resolve global food insecurity caused in part by Russia's invasion of grain-producing Ukraine.

The United Arab Emirates has called on its courts to begin enforcing the judgements of British courts, in a move that could affect the city of Dubai's status as a haven for the world's wealthy.

The decision, which affects all noncriminal civil, financial and marital cases, is already in effect and does not need to be drafted into law.

The Association of Banks in Lebanon is inclined to extend the closure of banks until Monday, al-Jadeed TV reported on Wednesday.

Quoting unnamed sources, al-Jadeed said the decision to extend the strike “came after days from a meeting that was held with caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi, who advised the Association to extend the strike until a security plan for protecting banks is finalized.”

Iran has informed the Lebanese delegation in Tehran of its approval of supplying Lebanon’s with 600,000 tons of fuel over a period of five months, al-Manar TV reported.

Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mujtaba Amani meanwhile announced that “good news will be soon declared about what has been agreed on regarding Iranian fuel and cooperation in the field of electricity between the delegation of the Lebanese Energy Ministry and the relevant officials in Iran.”

Crisis-hit Lebanon hopes to adopt key reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund for a long-delayed but urgently needed bailout before the end of next month if there is "political will," Lebanon's caretaker economy minister said Tuesday.

Amin Salam spoke to The Associated Press after meeting with an IMF delegation that has been visiting Lebanese officials since Monday. The reforms would include restructuring the country's banking system and banking secrecy laws.

Israel is preparing to activate an offshore gas field partly disputed by Lebanon, aiming to boost energy exports to Europe but risking further tensions with its northern neighbor.

Israel and Lebanon, still technically at war, have engaged in on-off U.S. mediated talks since 2020 to delineate their Mediterranean border, which could allow both parties to boost offshore natural gas exploration.

Warning that the world is in "great peril," the head of the United Nations says leaders meeting in person for the first time in three years must tackle conflicts and climate catastrophes, increasing poverty and inequality — and address divisions among major powers that have gotten worse since Russia invaded Ukraine.

In speeches and remarks leading up to the start of the leaders' meeting Tuesday, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cited the "immense" task not only of saving the planet, "which is literally on fire," but of dealing with the persisting COVID-19 pandemic. He also pointed to "a lack of access to finance for developing countries to recover -- a crisis not seen in a generation" that has seen ground lost for education, health and women's rights.