The Mouvement des entreprises de France (Movement of the Enterprises of France, MEDEF) announced that French companies are ready to work alongside the Lebanese people in a project to rebuild Beirut’s port after the devastating monster explosion on August 4, LBCI TV station reported on Thursday.

The Middle East's 21 billionaires have amassed $63 million every day since March, a combined bounty double the amount needed to repair the damage caused by the Beirut port blast, Oxfam said Thursday.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday opted not to comment extensively on Tuesday’s flare-up on the Lebanese-Israeli border while describing the events as “important and sensitive.”

“Yesterday’s events, the Israeli upheaval, the firing of phosphorus bombs and some attacks are something important and sensitive to us but I deliberately will not comment now,” said Nasrallah in brief remarks about the incidents during a Ashoura religious sermon.

The Lebanese Army on Wednesday said 13 missiles, 117 flares and 100 shells were fired by Israel overnight at Lebanese border areas.

“After midnight, helicopters belonging to the Israeli enemy targeted posts belonging to the Green Without Borders environmental NGO with three missiles at the outskirts of the town of Ramya and eight missiles at the outskirts of the town of Aita al-Shaab, in addition to two missiles that were fired from the Tal al-Raheb post at the outskirts of the aforementioned town,” the army said in a statement.

A Hizbullah spokesman on Wednesday declined to comment on the overnight flare-up on the Lebanese-Israeli border but a member of the group said no Hizbullah positions were hit by Israel as claimed by its army.

The Hizbullah member spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

Judicial Investigator Judge Fadi Sawwan on Wednesday interrogated four more people over the catastrophic August 4 blast at Beirut’s port.

The National News Agency identified those questioned as head of operations at the port Samer Raad, head of the security and safety dept. Mohammed Ziad al-Aouf, Customs First Sergeant Elias Chahine and Customs First Sergeant Khaled al-Khatib.

The Higher Defense Council on Wednesday extended the general mobilization measures until the end of the year, after a notable increase in coronavirus cases and deaths.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel views with "great gravity" the latest flare-up on the Lebanese border and pledged a tough response in the event of further incidents.

"We shall react forcefully to any attack against us," Netanyahu said in a statement. "I advise Hizbullah not to test Israel's strength. Hizbullah is once again endangering Lebanon due to its aggression."

Lebanon tops the list of countries where the number of COVID-19 deaths double every twenty days, which means that the number of deaths may reach about 24 by the middle of next month, al-Akhbar daily reported on Wednesday.

Israeli attack helicopters struck observation posts of the Hizbullah group along the Lebanon border overnight after shots were fired at Israeli troops operating in the area, the military said Wednesday.