U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday denounced Syria's President Bashar al-Assad as responsible for a "terrible," "egregious" crime, suggesting the United States could be poised to take action over this week's suspected chemical attack.

A parliamentary session to assess the performance of the government on a number of issues began on Thursday in Nejmeh Square, in light of the political parties failure to devise a new voting system that will rule the upcoming parliamentary polls.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri said at the opening of the session: “We are committed to stage the parliamentary elections and reject all forms of vacuum.”

At the opening of the Silk Road Conference on Thursday, Prime Minister Saad Hariri invited China and other countries to invest in Lebanon as a preparation for the massive reconstruction of Syria, as he called for joint efforts by private and public sectors between the two countries in that regard.

“China has always been a leading exporter to Lebanon. The same is not true of our exports to China. This calls for particular joint efforts by private and public sectors in our two countries. Today is a good start,” said Hariri at the opening of the conference “One Belt One Road in Lebanon” at the Adnan Kassar center for Arab economy.

As the parliament prepares to convene on Thursday in a general discussion where MPs will question the cabinet's progress, Speaker Nabih Berri said the session is an “alarm bell” as he urged all political parties to shoulder responsibility and agree on a new law for the upcoming parliamentary polls to avoid vacuum in the legislative institution.

Parties who have recently met the Speaker came out with the impression that “he is not comfortable” and believes Lebanon is facing a difficult stage, An Nahar daily reported Thursday.

General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim said on Thursday that the renewal of his term as the agency's chief is a “great responsibility thrown on my shoulders” that he will seek to safeguard, as he assured that he will seek to make the institution a source of pride.

“The General Security will not be less motivated in the next stage. Renewal of my term is a great responsibility and a confirmation of trust in Law,” said Ibrahim in an interview to the General Security magazine.

Internal Security Forces arrested a man in connection to counterfeit money being circulated throughout the eastern city of Zahle, an ISF statement said on Tuesday.

“Several counterfeit money transactions have recently been carried out by an anonymous person who purchases goods from shops through a counterfeit $100 bill,” said the ISF statement.

MP Ibrahim Kanaan warned on Tuesday that Lebanon faces an actual crisis shall political efforts fail to reach a new law to govern the parliamentary elections, as he urged the government to shoulder the responsibility.

“The government, according to the constitution, must carry out its duty at the level of the electoral law by approving the draft and referring it to the parliament, especially that the parliament has failed to resolve this file for years,” said Kanaan.

The security situation in the southern Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh is worrisome after reports said that groups from the militant organization of Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis is receiving military training inside the camp, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Tuesday.

The daily said there is a clear concern on the part of several regional and international parties about the situation in the camp after receiving information that there are groups of the said brigades-- that carry out terrorist operations in northern Sinai and are fought back by the Egyptian army on a daily basis-- receiving training in the camp.

After meeting French President Francoise Hollande in France, Prime Minister Saad Hariri continued his European tour and arrived in Berlin Monday evening for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Talks with Merkel focused on the latest developments in Lebanon and the region including the burden of Syrian refugees in Lebanon that will be highlighted during a Brussels conference on Syria's future starting today.

Hizbullah party and the AMAL movement do not seem to approve of a new electoral law proposal presented by Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil describing it as “very problematic”, media reports said on Monday.