Free Patriotic Movement leader Jebran Bassil on Wednesday said the Strong Lebanon bloc supports “the quick formation of a government led by PM-designate Saad Hariri.”

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday lashed out at the Presidency, after it accused him of interfering in the cabinet formation process.

LibanPost announced in a statement on Wednesday commitment to a general strike called by the Lebanese Trade Union on Thursday demanding a new government.

The World Bank put high emphasis in a series of reports and statements it made recently on the deteriorating conditions inside Lebanon’s military institution.

European Union member states have agreed to lift coronavirus travel restrictions on travelers from eight countries and territories including the United States, officials and diplomats said Wednesday.

A senior army official confirmed in remarks to the Associated Press on Wednesday that the economic situation in Lebanon has greatly affected the army’s morale.

Since the civil war, through wars with Israel, militant bombings and domestic turmoil, Lebanese have considered their military as an anchor for stability, one of the only institutions standing above the country's divisions.

But the military is now threatened by Lebanon's devastating financial collapse, one of the worst the world has seen in the past 150 years, according to the World Bank.

A delegation of top EU officials are expected to arrive in Beirut on Saturday in preparation for an international conference on Lebanon scheduled on June 22-23 at the EU level, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday.

The Free Patriotic Movement-led Strong Lebanon bloc on Tuesday said it rejects “veiled tripartite power-sharing” in a so-called “three eights” government that would grant each political camp eight ministerial seats.

In a statement issued after its weekly meeting, the bloc also said that it rejects “the fabrication of new norms related to an incomplete rotation (of portfolios) or a so-called exclusivity in the formation or nomination process.”

Sources following up on the cabinet formation process and close to al-Mustaqbal Movement have snapped back at a statement issued by the Presidency, describing it as an attack on Speaker Nabih Berri and the stance of Dar al-Fatwa’s juristic council.

“President Aoun is shutting the doors in the face of initiatives and openly declaring that he does not want a government. He does not want a government led by (PM-designate Saad) Hariri because any progress in addressing the files will be attributed to Hariri’s role,” the sources told LBCI TV on Tuesday.