Who is the new president of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun?
A 60-year-old career soldier, Joseph Aoun is the fifth commander-in-chief of the Lebanese armed forces to become president of the country. His election Thursday ended a two-year vacancy in the post, reserved for a Maronite Christian under the power-sharing system between religious communities in Lebanon. He succeeds Michel Aoun, with whom he is not related and whose mandate therefore expired in 2022.
Former commander of the 9e brigade, deployed on the border with Israel, Joseph Aoun was appointed in 2017 at the head of an army weakened by the military all-powerfulness of Hezbollah, before the latter was weakened by the war with Israel and the fall at the beginning of December by Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, his ally. Until Thursday, Mr. Aoun led the Lebanese army, kept away from the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
His candidacy was supported by the United States and Saudi Arabia, according to Lebanese political leaders cited by Agence France-Presse (AFP), which reports that diplomatic pressure on Lebanese parliamentarians was strong to push them to choose him. .
Joseph Aoun joined the army during the civil war in 1983, reports Reuters. Upon his appointment as commander of the armed forces, he launched a vast operation against the fighters of the Islamic State organization established in the northeast of the country, along the border with Syria, managing to drive them from Lebanese territory, underlines the press agency. Analysts say the army’s key role in implementing the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which came into force on November 27, was a determining factor in Joseph Aoun’s rise to power. presidency.
