President Michel Aoun stressed on Saturday that the State's efforts will continue to bring Lebanon to the forefront of the Levant and to make it the focal point for business and tourism.

“We are determined to bring Lebanon to the forefront of the Middle East and make it the focal point,” Aoun told Lebanese diaspora delegations.

Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea said he believes that political parties will not cross the deadlines set to agree on an electoral law, pointing out that the actual deadline is when the parliament's term ends in June, the pan-Arab Asharq al-Awsat daily reported on Saturday.

“The media is concerned but I am not worried. The actual red line is not May 15, but June 20, that is when the term of the parliament effectively ends. We have made deliberations in all directions. I believe that everyone realizes now how critical the situation is. Before we reach the red lines there will be an agreement on a new law,” Geagea told the daily in an interview.

As the result of the army's and security apparatuses strenuous efforts to preserve Lebanon's stability, the security situation is “under control now more than ever before,” al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday.

“It must be emphasized that the security situation in Lebanon is under control more than ever before. The Lebanese army and the various security apparatuses are on high alert to confront any emergency,” an unnamed security source told the daily.

Speaker Nabih Berri called on political parties to grasp the chance and approve his electoral law proposal because it “will not be valid after May 15” when an anticipated parliament session convenes, al-Akhbar daily reported on Saturday.

“I have done everything I could, but the others did not pick up the opportunity. The last law proposal I made to get out of the current crisis will not be valid after May 15,” Berri told the daily in an interview.

Education Minister Marwan Hamadeh said on Friday that President Michel Aoun supports a cabinet voting on an electoral law if consensus fails on the issue, pointing out that vacuum at the legislative authority opens the door to a constituent assembly.

“President Michel Aoun adheres to an option of voting on a law, versus consensus which has started to generalize (between political parties),” Hamadeh told VDL (100.5).

The electricity reform plan to improve Lebanon's power supply was raised from outside the agenda during the cabinet meeting on Thursday, but the issue triggered dispute between ministers of the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Friday.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri raised the issue when he inquired about the tender to lease Turkish power vessels as approved during a previous cabinet meeting.

An unprecedented move made by President Michel Aoun when he asked Prime Minister Saad Hariri to lead the cabinet session at the Presidential Palace, triggered a war of words on Twitter between Hariri and former PM Najib Miqati over the “constitutionality” of the gesture, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Friday.

During a cabinet meeting chaired by Aoun at Baabda Palace on Thursday, Aoun had to leave to attend a celebration marking the 66th anniversary of the Lebanese University. He asked Hariri to take his place and preside over the session without adjourning it, said the daily.

Government officials, celebrities and members of the press gathered at Jounieh Municipality on April 26 to announce the program of the highly anticipated Jounieh Summer Festival 2017 -- the official annual summer festival organized by the Municipality of Jounieh in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism.

President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri inked on Thursday the first law allowing expatriates to regain the Lebanese nationality.

The two men signed the law during the 4th Lebanese Diaspora Energy conference held at BIEL.

The Kataeb party deplored the political parties' failure to agree on a new electoral law, saying the hurdles obstructing the process are a result of conflicts between authority partners on the size of their sects' representation in the new parliament, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Thursday.

“The party refuses any attempt to change the nature of the current problem in Lebanon," Kataeb sources told the daily.