MP Cynthia Zarazir announced Thursday in remarks to al-Jadeed TV that she is “afraid” but “has not bought a gun,” clarifying earlier statements published by Annahar newspaper.

In her remarks to al-Jadeed, Zarazir denied that she has asked Army chief General Joseph Aoun for a permission to carry a gun into parliament’s building.

Caretaker Economy Minister Amin Salam announced Thursday that the country will witness “breakthroughs” in the bread shortage crisis in the “next two days.”

“There is an operations room at the Interior Ministry that will coordinate with the Economy Ministry to monitor all things in the market,” Salam said.

The Premiership on Thursday declared August 4 as a national mourning day, in an administrative memorandum.

All public administrations, institutions and municipalities will be closed on Thursday, August 4, 2022, in commemoration of the tragic anniversary of the Beirut Port blast.

Head of Finance Committee MP Ibrahim Kanaan said Thursday that the committee has asked the Ministry of Finance to review the state budget for the last time and to submit clarifications before the committee's next session on Tuesday.

Kanaan accused the Cabinet and the Parliament of shifting responsibility, as he urged for "more transparency and less selectivity."

Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati said Thursday that achieving food security is a priority for Arab countries.

Mikati, in an Arab agriculture ministers summit in Lebanon, urged the sisterly Arab countries to support Lebanon during its crisis.

Al-Marada leader Suleiman Franjieh met Thursday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh.

Franjiyeh left without making a statement, but answered journalists who asked him about his opinion regarding the name of Army chief Joseph Aoun as a candidate for Presidency. "We support everything that is in Lebanon's interest," Franjieh said.

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat suggested Thursday to protect the Beirut port wheat silos as a memorial for the tragic blast.

He called for the removal of the wheat from the silos in the port of Beirut and for building new silos in Tripoli, adding that "playing with the feelings of the victims' families" must stop.

Activists stormed Thursday the Ministry of Energy and Water to protest power and water cuts, amid dire living conditions.

"Where is the Energy Minister," a protestor asked on TV, as protestors claimed that there are no employees in the ministry, including Minister Walid Fayyad who was not there.

Amnesty International announced Wednesday that it is "shameful" that "women MPs in the Lebanese parliament, especially those who criticize the authorities, are being harassed by their male counterparts and by the Speaker himself simply because they are women in a parliament dominated by men."

On 29 July 2022, as from 7:00pm, friends of Father Paolo Dall'Oglio will host a vigil at the Jesuit church St. Joseph in Ashrafieh, Beirut. The vigil will be followed by a private screening of the documentary film "Ayouni" (2021) by Yasmin Fedda.

Dall'Oglio was kidnapped by the Islamic State group in Raqqa, Syria, while negotiating the release of hostages from captivity. For 9 years, family and friends of Paolo Dall'Oglio have been waiting for answers about his whereabouts, pressing public authorities in Italy and Syria to release information.