Joseph Aoun elected as Lebanon's president after two-year deadlock

Gen. Joseph Aoun, commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, was elected as the country's new president by an overwhelming majority in the second round of voting. He secured 99 votes out of 128 from the parliament, which had been deadlocked for years in electing a successor to Michel Aoun whose term ended in October 2022. Aoun's candidacy was backed by several political parties, as well as the US, France and Saudi Arabia, which saw him as a man of "personal integrity" and a reliable partner.