Shops closing, companies going bankrupt and pharmacies with shelves emptying — in Lebanon these days, fistfights erupt in supermarkets as shoppers scramble to get to subsidized powdered milk, rice and cooking oil.

Like almost every other Lebanese, Nisrine Taha's life has been turned upside down in the past year under the weight of the country's crushing economic crisis. Anxiety for the future is eating at her.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah announced Thursday that his party is still willing to support the formation of a so-called specialist, nonpartisan government but warned that such a government will not be able to take unpopular and difficult decisions.

Europe's top human rights body has urged Cyprus to investigate allegations of ill-treatment of migrants arriving by boat from Lebanon last September, but Nicosia insisted it had respected the law.

The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner, Dunja Mijatovic, sent a letter to Cypriot Interior Minister Nicos Nouris, in which she also raised concerns about poor reception facility conditions.

French President Emanuel Macron said Thursday that a new "approach" is needed to deal with the Lebanese crisis.

Najat Rochdi, Officer in Charge of the Office of U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon, and Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary General for Peace Operations, on Thursday briefed the U.N. Security Council virtually on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701 (2006) and the situation in Lebanon, as reflected in the latest report of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Lebanese private company Pharmaline will import one million doses of the Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V, the owner of the company said.

A landmine explosion killed a man identified as A.A. Thursday in an area on Lebanon’s northern border with Syria, the National News Agency said.

PM-designate Saad Hariri met Thursday afternoon in Baabda with President Michel Aoun, only hours after the two leaders exchanged bitter tirades that reached the extent of asking each other to step down.

"I told President Aoun that I'm seeking an 18-seat government of specialists," Hariri said after the talks.

The Presidency General Directorate issued a statement on Thursday setting an appointment for PM-designate Saad Hariri to visit Baabda Palace and discuss the cabinet formation with President Michel Aoun.

Progressive Socialist Party leader ex-MP Walid Jumblat held talks with the French Ambassador to Lebanon Anne Grillo late on Wednesday and discussed the latest developments.