The Cabinet on Tuesday agreed to set up a special fund for donations aimed at confronting coronavirus, as Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the outcome of the preventative measures has been good.

“Crises cells will be created by municipalities and municipal unions to cater to people’s needs and the Economy Ministry will monitor prices for any hikes and will take the necessary measures,” Information Minister Manal Abdul Samad announced after a Cabinet session.

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat on Tuesday criticized the Military Court’s decision to release Lebanese-American national Amer Fakhoury, describing it as a “dose of poison for the Presidency.”

“Amid the peak of the health and economic crises, the dual loyalty devil’s advocate at the center of decision-making finds an edict to release the collaborator Amer Fakhoury,” Jumblat tweeted.

Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni and the Association of Banks on Tuesday agreed to keep some branches of banks open throughout Lebanon’s lockdown over the coronavirus crisis, following a series of statements and counter-statements.

A statement issued by the Finance Ministry said the branches would open as of Wednesday and that an agreement was reached on “organizing work shifts and carrying out the necessary measures to facilitate banking services in order to cater to the needs of the people during these difficult and critical circumstances.”

A Lebanese military judge Tuesday appealed a verdict by the military tribunal that ordered the release of a Lebanese-American held since September on charges of working for the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army militia two decades ago, state-run National News Agency said.

Judge Ghassan Khoury asked the Military Court of Appeals to strike down an earlier ruling in favor of Amer Fakhoury and issue an arrest warrant against him. He asked that Fakhoury be put on trial again on charges of kidnapping, torturing and detaining Lebanese citizens as well as "killing and attempting to kill others," according to NNA.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab held talks at the Grand Serail on Tuesday with United Nations Resident Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs in Lebanon Philip Lazarini.

The government is expected to discuss monetary and economic matters during a meeting at the Grand Serail, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Tuesday.

Health Minister Hamad Hasan announced Monday evening that Lebanon’s coronavirus infections tally now stands at 120, noting that only three cases have not been traced to a source.

In an interview on LBCI TV, the minister added that eighty percent of the 120 infected people “do not have symptoms.”

Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni on Monday expressed his rejection of a decision by the Association of Banks in Lebanon to close banks until March 29 over the coronavirus crisis, urging the public prosecution to take “swift action.”

Accusing ABL of breaching the government’s instructions on keeping banks open despite the closure of the majority of public and private institutions in the country, Wazni described the Association’s move as “rushed.”

The Association of Banks in Lebanon announced Monday that the country’s banks will close until March 29 except for operations related to ATMs, salaries and the food, oil and medical sectors.

The government had announced Sunday that banks would remain open to maintain essential transactions despite the closure of most public and private institutions and businesses over the coronavirus crisis.

Al-Jadeed TV reporter Rachelle al-Husseini collapsed Monday during a live broadcast from the al-Masnaa border crossing.

Al-Husseini and several other reporters were in the area to cover the closure of the country’s main border crossing with Syria as part of Lebanon’s two-week lockdown in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.