United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Joanna Wronecka and Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix have briefed the Security Council on the latest report of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the implementation of Resolution 1701.

"Noting the unrelenting socio-economic crisis and its dire impact on people’s daily lives, the Special Coordinator warned that Lebanon stands at a crossroad between rebound or collapse, and underscored that its trajectory will depend on the ability and willingness of the country’s leaders to urgently initiate sustainable solutions," Wronecka's office said in a statement.

The Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) together with the United Nations in Lebanon has launched the second window of its financial support to eight women-led organizations in Lebanon that are working on community peacebuilding in Lebanon, as part of strengthening their institutional capacity and maximizing peacebuilding results.

“The WPHF is a flexible and rapid financing tool supporting quality interventions to enhance the capacity of local women around the world to prevent conflict, respond to crises and emergencies, and seize key peacebuilding opportunities,” U.N. Lebanon said in a statement.

Acting State Commissioner to Military Court Judge Fadi Akiki on Thursday defended the controversial detention and interrogation of Archbishop Moussa al-Hajj, who is the Archbishop of the Archeparchy of Haifa and the Holy Land and Patriarchal Exarch of Jerusalem and Palestine and Jordan.

“The funds that he was transporting, around $460,000, are not owned by the church but they rather came from collaborators residing in Israel, the majority of whom work for the enemy in the occupied territories,” Akiki said in an interview with An-Nahar newspaper.

Black smoke was bellowing heavily on Thursday afternoon from the blast-hit silos at Beirut port.

Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam al-Mawlawi meanwhile tasked the Beirut Fire Brigade and the Civil Defense to immediately launch cooling operations in a manner that “does not threaten the safety of individuals and does not pose a risk to the silos.”

Lebanese citizens were ecstatic on Wednesday evening after the national basketball team beat China 72-69 in the quarter finals of the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup that is being played in Indonesia.

Lebanon will now play against Jordan in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat tweeted Thursday that the arrest of Archbishop Mussa al-Hajj must be addressed calmly.

"It would be better to address the issue in a calm way, instead of making noise about it," Jumblat said, adding that it is important during these hard circumstances to respect the institutions.

Al-Marada leader Suleiman Franjieh met Thursday with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi over the arrest and summons of archbishop Mussa al-Hajj.

Franjieh said that there's a fifth column in al-Hajj's case and asked who might benefit from the incident, as he condemned the act without blaming his allies, the Shiite Duo.

Army chief Joseph Aoun is not comfortable with Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea supporting him as a Presidency candidate, al-Joumhouria newspaper said.

The daily on Thursday reported that Aoun doesn't want his name to circulate as a candidate for Presidency.

Israeli caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid has told U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein that he wants to make a deal with Lebanon over the disputed maritime border as soon as possible, American news website Axios reported.

The conversation between Lapid and Hochstein took place last week on the sidelines of Biden's visit to Israel.

Lebanon's General Security agency denied Thursday any call between General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim and Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, following the arrest and summons of archbishop Mussa al-Hajj.

The General Security said in a statement that the arrest of Hajj is "a judicial procedure that anyone who crosses from and to Palestinian territories is subject to, without any exception."