UNIFIL on Friday handed over one of its positions to the Lebanese Army, its "strategic partner," at a ceremony in south-western Lebanon, the U.N. force said.

UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Stefano Del Col handed over U.N. position “2-45A” to Brigadier General Maroun Kobayati, who represented Lebanese Army Commander General Joseph Aoun.

The main obstacles delaying the new government’s formation are “domestic,” Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi said on Thursday.

“Irresponsibility” and “personal interests” are to blame for the continued deadlock, the patriarch added, in a discussion with students at the Saint Joseph University (USJ) in Beirut.

Pope Francis has hoped the “spirit of wisdom” will prevail in Lebanon, as he reiterated his solidarity with the crisis-hit country.

Prominent Lebanese music composer Samir Sfeir arrived in Lebanon Thursday after he was detained for more than a month in Saudi Arabia.

The National News Agency said he was welcomed at the airport by MP Salim Aoun of the Strong Lebanon bloc, prominent lyricist Nizar Francis, and several members of his family.

Army Commander General Joseph Aoun has held talks in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron and top French defense officials.

President Michel Aoun on Wednesday signed a decree for referring to parliament an urgent draft law aimed at approving and financing the ration cards plan.

Caretaker Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni had on Monday signed the draft law, which was prepared by the Premiership and is aimed at “approving ration cards and opening an additional and extraordinary line of credit for funding them.”

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has started scaling up its support to a crucial national social support scheme in Lebanon to assist families struggling to make ends meet amid a severe economic downturn, skyrocketing inflation and a collapsing Lebanese pound.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, WFP said it will support an additional 195,000 people, aiming to reach a total of 300,000 people per month through the National Poverty Targeting Program (NPTP) of the Ministry of Social Affairs which is developing the national social protection framework and strategy. To address inflation and increased food prices in Lebanon, WFP “will provide each family with a cash top-up of 200,000 LBP that can be used in shops or at cash machines (ATMs),” it said.

Najat Rochdi, the Deputy U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, on Tuesday briefed a virtual meeting of the Security Council’s Informal Expert Group on Women, Peace and Security on the situation in Lebanon, particularly with regards to impact of the current crisis on women and how women are working to sustain peace and security in the country, her office said.

Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday called on President Michel Aoun and PM-designate Saad Hariri to hold consecutive meetings in order to agree on the line-up of the new government.

“The key to solving everything in the country is the formation of a new government,” Nasrallah said in a televised address marking 21 years since Israel’s military withdrawal from Lebanon.

Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Jebran Bassil on Tuesday called for “a state of right, justice and accountability in Lebanon,” in a tweet marking 21 years since Israel’s military withdrawal from Lebanon.

“The liberation of the year 2000 ended the myth of the occupation and the 2006 victory put an end to the era of the impunity of Israeli aggression,” Bassil said.