The Lebanese daily Al-Mustaqbal published today its latest edition of the paper 20 years after its publication, to be limited to 14 February on the Internet.

Former Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri was the founder of the Future newspaper, now led by his son, Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

"The future is closing on Thursday," the editorial said on the front page. "The February 14 launch is digitally renewed."

For 20 years, the newspaper has documented pivotal events in Lebanon's history, most notably the assassination of Rafik Hariri on February 14, 2005, and subsequent changes in the political arena in Lebanon.

After Hariri's assassination, the paper formed a platform for the Future Movement to confront its opponents, led by Hezbollah.

Hani Hammoud, the newspaper's editor-in-chief, wrote on Thursday that the paper was struggling to cope with the digital era.

"Twenty years has turned a generation of readers into consumers who feel that 120 characters are enough to make them know," he said.

"The battle of the daily editors in Al-Mustaqbal newspaper - as all the world's newspapers are supposed to - is to find an address that the reader does not feel he saw the night before, on the screen of his smart phone."

The closure follows the closure of a number of Lebanese newspapers.

In September, the daily Al-Anwar was suspended for nearly 60 years due to "financial losses".

In June Al-Hayat closed its offices in Lebanon, where it was established in 1946 before it was later owned by the Saudis.

The publication of its printed copies in Lebanon was discontinued in the same month, with the issuance of its international version on the Internet.

In late 2016, Al-Safir newspaper was closed 42 years after its first edition because of financial difficulties.