The Lebanese army arrested several activists on Friday during scuffles with protesters blocking the Jal el-dib highway, amid sit-ins elsewhere as the two-month-old movement against corruption and mismanagement continues.

Lieutenant General Sir John Lorimer, the UK's Defense Senior Adviser to the Middle East and North Africa, visited to Lebanon on December 11 and held high level meetings with Lebanese officials, accompanied by the British Embassy’s Defense Attaché, Lieutenant Colonel Alex Hilton.

The Lebanese state, represented by the head of the lawsuits dept. at the Justice Ministry Judge Hilana Iskandar and its legal delegate the lawyer Rabih al-Fakhri, has filed a lawsuit against MP Hadi Hbeish, the National News Agency reported on Thursday.

International ratings agency Fitch on Thursday bumped Lebanon’s credit rating down to "CC" from "CCC", after an initial downgrade in August.

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Thursday announced that the FPM will not take part in any techno-political government, calling for a government led by a technocrat and comprising technocrat ministers.

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Thursday held talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh.

The National News Agency said Berri’s adviser and caretaker Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil joined the meeting after it got underway and that the talks tackled the political developments.

Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri held telephone calls with World Bank President David Malpas and Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund, Christina Georgieva, and discussed with them the economic and monetary difficulties facing Lebanon, his media office said on Thursday.

Protest movement against the political class over official mismanagement and corruption continue in Lebanon for the 57th day with protests taking different shapes from street marches, massive rallies in main squares and protests near the state’s institutions.

Transparency International published a new report on the level of corruption revealing that Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine top the countries of the Middle East and North Africa in terms of the number of citizens who have been bribed for their votes in elections.

Hundreds of private owned businesses announced a collective tax strike that they said would “lend their value to workers instead to maintain their livelihood,” as Lebanon passes through an unprecedented economic crisis that saw hundreds of employees laid off.