The Lebanon’s parliament has elected US-backed army chief Joseph Aoun country’s President after two years stalemate.
Aoun was voted president after two rounds of voting, and has now filled the presidential vacuum.
His election followed intense efforts of Saudi Arabia and the United States which rallied support for Aoun, who is close to Washington and Riyadh.
Lebanon has been without a president since the end of the tenure of former President Michel Aoun in 2022, who was backed by Iran-supported Hezbollah.
Until now, negotiations over the former President’s successor had been unsuccessful, reinvigorating tensions between the country’s pro-Western and pro-Iranian camps.
The Lebanese army did not participate in the all-out war with Israel but is a key player in the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
As part of the tiny eastern Mediterranean country’s confessional power-sharing system, Lebanon’s president is typically a Maronite Christian.
