“Lebanon Welcomes New Leadership: Joseph Aoun Takes the Presidential Helm”

BEIRUT — The Lebanese parliament has elected Joseph Aoun, the commander of the nation’s military, as the next president after being without one for over two years.

Aoun’s election on Thursday represents a significant measure towards addressing the severely impacted economy and financial system, as well as securing funds to restore extensive damage resulted from a 14-month conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that concluded in November.

“It’s high time we had a new president,” states Abdul Rahman Bizri, an independent parliament member and former mayor who supported Aoun. “We must recommence efforts to rebuild the public sector, institutions, and stability in the nation to fulfill the aspirations of the populace.”

The new president’s agenda is extensive.

Aoun pledged in his acceptance address on Thursday to enhance the diminished governance capabilities of the small Middle Eastern nation, reform the financial sector, and safeguard Lebanon. It remains ambiguous when he will resign from military command or if he will maintain both roles simultaneously.

“We will allocate resources to the military for securing and managing the borders in the south while clarifying them in the east and north, combating terrorism, enforcing international resolutions, and deterring Israeli assaults on Lebanon,” Aoun stated in his acceptance speech. “It’s time to invest in Lebanon through our international relations instead of relying on foreign forces to dominate each other.”

He did not specify which powers he referred to, but he could have been alluding to the tension between Iran, which supports Hezbollah, and the U.S. and Israel.

Aoun, perceived in Lebanon to have backing from Saudi Arabia and the U.S., also vowed to “affirm the state’s exclusive right to wield arms.” This was likely a veiled reference to Hezbollah, Lebanon’s most formidable armed group, which under a ceasefire agreement with Israel must withdraw its fighters and disarm by late January. The ceasefire concluded hostilities that initiated in October 2023 when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in solidarity with Hamas, which attacked southern Israel from Gaza on October 7 of that year.

Aoun’s role will also be pivotal in enforcing that November ceasefire with Israel. Israeli military forces persist in their occupation of a strip of border villages in southern Lebanon, and Israel’s defense minister cautioned earlier this month that Israel might extend its presence beyond January, surpassing the ceasefire agreement’s terms, if it perceives Hezbollah has not complied fully.

Najat Saliba, a parliament member who also supported Aoun, states that the situation necessitates the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, enacted post a 2006 ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, which has yet to be enforced.

Lebanon’s MPs had failed in 12 previous voting rounds to reach a consensus on a president, leaving the post vacant since former President Michel Aoun’s resignation in October 2022. The former leader is not related to Joseph Aoun.

This time, however, opposition to Aoun — mainly from Hezbollah’s political faction, which holds a substantial minority in parliament — diminished significantly, and after two rounds of voting on Thursday, Aoun secured the two-thirds majority required to assume the presidency. To achieve this, he needed backing from a coalition of Lebanon’s diverse religious groups. Aoun is a Maronite Christian, which traditionally qualifies one to hold the presidency and lead the armed forces in Lebanon. (The system dictates that the prime minister must be Sunni Muslim and the speaker of parliament should be Shia Muslim.)

Aoun’s detractors criticized him for being the favored candidate in an election they claim has been orchestrated by nations like the United States and Israel, whose foreign minister extended rare congratulations to Aoun soon after his election. Aoun has been collaborating closely with a U.S.-led oversight commission to ensure the enforcement of the November ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, garnering praise from U.S. officials.

Some lawmakers also opposed allowing Aoun to circumvent a constitutional limitation that prevented him from running for president while simultaneously serving as military chief.

In objection, several politicians cast blank ballots during Thursday’s vote or submitted ballots listing absurd candidates, including one vote for U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.