Lebanon’s parliament has elected army chief Joseph Aoun as the country’s president after a second round of elections, Lebanese media reported on Thursday.
Aoun won the second round of voting in the 13th parliamentary session and became the fourth military commander to get the presidential seat at Baabda Palace. His predecessors Emile Lahoud, Michel Suleiman and Michel Aoun had previously served as the country’s leader. The new president received support from 99 MPs.
Aoun will lead the country for six years. The traditional ceremony of swearing allegiance to Lebanon and its constitution will be held in front of parliament shortly.
Due to the 1989 Taif Agreement, the President of the Lebanese Republic has legislative and executive powers. One of his first instructions will be to appoint the state’s prime minister after parliamentary consultations.
Last October, Axios quoted US officials as saying that the US was planning to seek the election of a new Lebanese president against the backdrop of Israeli operations against the Shiite Hezbollah movement.
