The Presidency denied Friday the presence of a link between the parliamentary elections and President Michel Aoun’s latest remarks on Syrian refugees.

“The media reports published today about the presence of a link between President Michel Aoun’s tackling of the issue of Syrian refugees in Lebanon and the file of parliamentary elections are baseless,” the Presidency said in a statement.

Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib on Friday expressed his relief over the expat voting process that kicked off in the morning in the Arab countries and Iran as part of Lebanon’s 2022 parliamentary elections.

“My heart warmed when I saw this scene and I hope voter turnout will reach 70%,” Bou Habib said from the Foreign Ministry.

Last week, the British Embassy in Beirut hosted a climate action workshop for 16 youth innovators in collaboration with the idea innovator company, Ideanco. The UK’s COP26 MENA Ambassador Janet Rogan attended virtually from London and the British Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires, Alyson King, gave closing remarks, the British Embassy said on Friday.

"Tackling climate change is a priority for the UK government, which hosted the COP26 conference in Glasgow last year. COP26 brought countries together to enable all countries to meet global net zero targets and reduce the impacts of climate change, resulting in the Glasgow Climate Pact. To achieve this countries must unlock public and private investment and push for innovative and green solutions," the British Embassy added.

Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi said Friday that the expats parliamentary elections are going smoothly and no problems nor major violations have been detected so far.

According to Mawlawi, the turnout abroad will be heavy this year as the numbers of those who have registered their names to vote have surpassed the numbers of those who registered in the 2018 elections.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Thursday warned against “sedition stirrers,” during a meeting in Msayleh with a delegation from the al-Kraydin Arab tribes.

“Love of homeland is part of religious faith and sedition stirrers under any circumstances, be it in elections time or not, are suspicious in their national and even religious belonging,” Berri said.

Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib launched Thursday at the Foreign Ministry an operations room for overseeing the expat voting that will start on May 6.

Miqati urged all expats to vote in the parliamentary elections that will be held "with all integrity and transparency" even though "there had been doubts about carrying out the elections."

Prime Minister Najib Miqati has criticized "unprecedented dollar amounts" that have been pumped into Lebanon in the past few days, as Lebanon prepares for its parliamentary elections in May 15.

"There are violations," Miqati said in a televised interview, as he praised Minister of Interior Bassam al-Mawlawi for "doing a great job" to achieve the elections successfully.

President Michel Aoun has stepped into the ongoing debate in the country over electoral spending, days after a war of words erupted over the issue between the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces.

A senior Shiite cleric, Sheikh Ahmed Qabalan, on Tuesday announced that voting in the upcoming parliamentary elections is a “national and religious duty,” as he called for “purging state administrations and institutions of U.S. influence.”

The Lebanese Forces on Monday snapped back at Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil over the issue of electoral spending, blasting him as the "thief of the republic."