Speaker Nabih Berri was reelected Tuesday for his post with the votes of 65 MPs while 23 blank votes were casted and 40 others were canceled for containing political messages rather than a candidate's name.

Heavy gunfire erupted in some Lebanese regions after the result was announced.

Reformist MPs born out of the 2019 protest movement gathered Tuesday outside Beirut's port and met with families of the port blast victims ahead of the first Parliament session.

The independent lawmakers joined the victims' relatives in a symbolic march from the docks to parliament.

French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to visit Lebanon anew after he finalizes some pressing domestic files, a media report said on Monday.

“He has recently informed one of his top aides in the Elysee’s special crisis cell for Lebanon that he intends to visit Beirut immediately after the June 19 French parliamentary elections, and after he carries out changes to his international affairs team,” Lebanon’s privately-run Central News Agency reported.

The MPs of the Independent National Bloc -- Farid al-Khazen, Tony Franjieh and William Tawk – held a meeting Monday with MP Elias Bou Saab of the Free Patriotic Movement, who is running for the deputy parliament speaker post.

The meeting, on the eve of a parliamentary session to elect a speaker and a deputy speaker, was held at Khazen’s residence in Jounieh. It was also attended by ex-minister Youssef Saadeh of the Marada Movement.

The Appeals Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon has issued a scheduling order for the pronouncement of the Sentencing Judgment in the case of Prosecutor v. Merhi and Oneissi in a public session on June 16.

On 18 August 2020, the Trial Chamber pronounced its Judgment in the Ayyash et al. case and unanimously found Hizbullah operative Salim Jamil Ayyash guilty beyond reasonable doubt of all counts charged against him in the amended consolidated indictment.

UNIFIL on Monday honored the contribution of partners in communities, civil society, religious institutions, troop-contributing countries, and others, as the mission marked the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers.

As May 29 fell on a Sunday this year, UNIFIL held its ceremony today at its Naqoura headquarters.

MP Mohammed Raad, the head of Hizbullah’s parliamentary bloc, noted Monday that there is no occupation in Lebanon “other than the Israeli occupation.”

“Show us if there is an occupation in Lebanon now other than the Israeli occupation so that we fight it with you. Enough with the deception of people. The elections are over and so are electoral slogans. Let us work for the sake of the people and the country now,” Raad said.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday called on supporters not to fire in the air when he gets elected for a new term as parliament speaker on Tuesday.

In a statement addressed to “the Lebanese in all regions,” Berri, who is running for the post uncontested, called for “total refrainment from opening fire during the organization of any celebratory event, especially those related to the election of a parliament speaker tomorrow.”

In Lebanon, domestic violence isn’t a recent problem. Many women were exposed to either verbal or physical abuse during their lives.

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Representative and Regional Director for West Asia, Sami Dimassi, together with the President of Nusaned, Ghaida Nawam, have signed an agreement to mark the start of their collaboration in implementing a series of pilot projects.

The agreement falls within the SwitchMed II initiative, funded by the European Union, aiming to provide support mechanisms to countries on the southern shores of the Mediterranean to switch to sustainable consumption and production patterns.