Lebanon's central bank announced on Friday that money changers and transfer companies must comply with stricter rules as the country faces heavy U.S. pressure to regulate its cash economy and cut off Hezbollah funding.

MENA adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron, Anne-Claire Legendre, has reaffirmed during her visit to Lebanon France's commitment to hold a conference in support of the Lebanese army in Riyadh.

Legendre said France and Saudi Arabia are discussing Lebanon's progress in implementing the government's plan to disarm Hezbollah.

Israel is readying a limited operation on Lebanon's Bekaa and Beirut, Israeli media reports said, adding that Hezbollah is re-arming and rebuilding itself and that the Lebanese army is incapable of implementing the government's decision to disarm the group.

The Israeli army would strike underground weapon-production sites in Beirut and the Bekaa, the report said, claiming that some of the sites are hidden among residential buildings.

Former PSP leader Walid Jumblat criticized a proposition by Kataeb leader Sami Gemayel to introduce Lebanon's neutrality into the Lebanese constitution.

"Before we amend the constitution, hold on, will Israel withdraw from the occupied (Lebanese) territories?" Jumblat asked Thursday on the X platform.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has welcomed a plan by Saudi Arabia to bolster commercial ties with Lebanon, saying that he is "very thankful for the Kingdom's kind initiative".

"We highly value Saudi Arabia's appreciation for the efforts of President Joseph Aoun and the Lebanese government in preventing drug smuggling to our Arab neighbors," Salam said, after a senior Saudi official announced that his country plans to imminently bolster commercial ties with Lebanon after Lebanese authorities demonstrated efficacy curbing drug smuggling to the kingdom over the past months.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has lamented that the Lebanese government has shown “no perseverance” and “no determination” to disarm Hezbollah.

“There is no determination. There is no clearness, there is no perseverance. From time to time, there are some declarations, and everybody knows that these declarations are like empty declarations,” Geagea said in English in an interview with the UAE’s The National newspaper.

The U.S.-led ceasefire monitoring committee, known as the Mechanism, held its 13th periodic meeting Wednesday in Naqoura under the chairmanship of U.S. general Joseph Clearfield and in the absence of U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus.

The meeting witnessed a Lebanese explanation of the continued Israeli violations, especially the breaches of the past few days and the Israeli evacuation warnings for a number of buildings in several southern towns that were followed by airstrikes, al-Binaa newspaper reported on Thursday.

MENA adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron met Thursday in Lebanon with President Joseph Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri amid increased pressure on Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah.

Anne-Claire Legendre discussed with the two leaders economic reforms that the international community is demanding crisis-hit Lebanon to implement in order to unlock financial aid. She also discussed a ceasefire reached last year with Israel, Hezbollah's disarmament, and decreasing Israel's military pressure on Lebanon, local media reports said.

The Israeli Air Force is working on reducing the response time of helicopter gunships deployed in north Israel over fears of a potential Hezbollah attack, Israel’s Maariv newspaper has reported.

“The army’s measures are aimed at providing an instant response to any infiltration of attempted attack against the border settlements, and at preventing a scenario similar to what happened in Gaza’s envelope,” Maariv added.

The United States’ new ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa will arrive in Beirut on Friday, LBCI television reported.

“He will meet with President Joseph Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Monday,” the TV network said.