Joseph Aoun elected as President of Lebanon

BEIRUT, Jan. 09 (YPA) – The Lebanese Parliament elected on Thursday the army commander, Joseph Aoun, as president of the country, to be the 14th president of the Lebanese Republic.

This comes after more than two years of a presidential vacancy, following the end of the term of former president Michel Aoun.

Thus, Joseph Aoun is the fourth commander of the army who holds this position, as Emile Lahoud, Michel Suleiman, and Michel Aoun preceded him.

Joseph Aoun served as Commander of the Lebanese Army. He held this mission since March 8, 2017, succeeding General Jean Kahwaji. The beginning of his military career in the army dates back to 1983.

Aoun was promoted until he attained the rank of brigadier general in 2013. He continued to hold military ranks, reaching the rank of general in 2017, with his appointment as army commander, occupying this position during one of the most sensitive periods in Lebanon.

During this period, Lebanon witnessed major security and political challenges, most notably the “Dawn of the Outskirts” battle in 2017, which the army fought with the resistance against terrorist organizations in the barren lands of the town of Arsal and Al-Qaa, on the border with Syria.

The country also witnessed security challenges after the outbreak of protests on October 17, 2019, and the expanded Israeli war on Lebanon that lasted more than 60 days in 2023, which imposed new obligations on the Lebanese army, with the signing of the ceasefire agreement.

YPA