Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan lamented Friday that an ongoing lockdown that has been running for 12 days has failed to bring down the rate of coronavirus infections in Lebanon, as caretaker Economy Minister Raoul Nehme announced that the country will reopen on Monday.

President Michel Aoun on Friday took credit for a parliament decision calling for a financial audit of all state institutions, describing the move as an achievement.

“Parliament’s compliance with our desire to carry out a forensic financial audit of the state’s institutions and administrations is an achievement for the Lebanese who want to know who wasted their funds and encroached on their incomes,” Aoun said in a tweet.

Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil said Friday that the Lebanese people have “triumphed” thanks to President Michel Aoun, after parliament approved a decision calling for a forensic audit of the accounts of the central bank and all state institutions.

Parliament on Friday approved a recommendation calling for subjecting the central bank and all state institutions to a forensic audit without regard to bank secrecy, in response to a letter from President Michel Aoun.

Lawmakers attended a general parliament meeting on Friday at the UNESCO Palace to discuss President Michel Aoun's message to help conduct forensic audit after the withdrawal of an international consultancy firm from the task over insufficient documents.

UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jan Kubis met with President Michel Aoun and briefed the president on the deliberations of the Security Council meeting on Resolution 1701, the Presidency office said in a tweet on Friday.

French President Emmanuel Macron called on Lebanese officials to put their own interests aside and work on achieving the interests of the people.

France had announced Thursday that it will host a video conference with international partners on December 2 to discuss humanitarian aid for crisis-stricken Lebanon.

The conference will be held in conjunction with the United Nations. It aims to attract the highest-level representation possible, with the aim of encouraging aid to the debt-strapped Lebanese economy, media reports said.

Consul General of Lebanon in Istanbul Mazen Kabbara warned on Thursday that the Lebanese are at risk of being exploited by mafias deceiving them into paying huge amounts of money in return for smuggling them into Europe, the National News Agency reported.

UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jan Kubis said on Thursday that if Lebanon decides to change its electoral law, it should agree on that “well before holding the 2022 parliamentary elections” to avoid a delay.