Berri calls Parliament session for July 31

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has called for a general assembly session to be held on Thursday, July 31, at 11 a.m., according to a statement from the Parliament's presidency following a scheduled meeting at 1 p.m.

The session will focus on “examining draft laws and legislative proposals listed on the agenda.” Among them is expected to be the highly anticipated banking resolution bill — recommended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and approved Monday by the Finance and Budget Committee. On July 19, Finance Minister Yassine Jaber told L’Orient Today he anticipated the bill would be submitted to Parliament for a vote before the end of the month.

Later on Tuesday, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced that the Cabinet session initially scheduled for Thursday had been postponed to the following Tuesday due to the overlap with the legislative session and the government’s required participation in it.

Two Cabinet meetings are now expected next week. One will address “the continuation of discussions launched on April 17, 2025, concerning the implementation of the ministerial declaration, particularly the extension of state sovereignty across all Lebanese territory through its own forces only.”

The prime minister also stated that ministers would review “arrangements related to the November 2024 cease-fire,” based on “ideas outlined in the document submitted by envoy Tom Barrack.”

The cease-fire agreement between Lebanon and Israel, which came into effect on Nov. 27, included provisions for a full Israeli military withdrawal from southern Lebanon. Despite this, Israeli forces continue to occupy five positions in Lebanese territory, carry out ground incursions, and conduct near-daily airstrikes.

On the Lebanese side, the agreement called for the disarmament of Hezbollah — initially south of the Litani River, and eventually across the country — in line with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701. However, the party-militia has rejected the provision.

More than 270 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon over the past eight months.