Lebanon's parliament has chosen Army Chief Joseph Aoun as the country's new president, ending a long period of political deadlock and a vacancy in the presidency, according to CNN.

Following intensive efforts by the United States and Saudi Arabia to rally support for him, Aoun was elected after two rounds of voting. Both nations have strong ties with Aoun, who supports Riyadh and Washington. Following his election, Aoun left his military position and showed up at the parliament to take the oath of office dressed in civilian attire. Aoun proclaimed the beginning of a "new era" for Lebanon in his acceptance speech, promising to resolve the nation's persistent political and economic problems. According to CNN, he also made a unique commitment to "monopolise weapons" under state control, underlining his desire to disarm Hezbollah, the militant organisation supported by Iran and with considerable military clout in Lebanon.

Hezbollah, the most heavily armed militant group in the Middle East, held significant influence in several countries. However, it faced heavy losses in a recent war with Israel. This conflict, combined with the weakening of its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has sparked renewed domestic discussions about disarming the group. Hezbollah's stance was further undermined by the US-brokered ceasefire deal that was struck in November and called for its evacuation from the Israeli border region. According to CNN, Israeli forces are required to vacate Lebanese territory by the end of January. Even though the army of Lebanon did not participate actively in the conflict with Israel, it was instrumental in putting the terms of the truce into effect. 

In his speech, Aoun highlighted that Lebanon, as a country, will work towards removing Israeli occupation. He also talked about the possibility of creating a national defence strategy to protect Lebanon from Israel, even without Hezbollah, which has traditionally been responsible for fighting against Israeli forces. “The Lebanese state–I repeat, the Lebanese state–will get rid of the Israeli occupation,” Aoun said as quoted by CNN. “My era will include the discussion of our defensive strategy to enable the Lebanese state to get rid of the Israeli occupation and to retaliate against its aggression,” he added. 

Lebanon has been without a president since October 2022, when Michel Aoun, supported by Hezbollah, finished his term. Over the past two years, 12 attempts to elect a new president have failed, worsening the split between Lebanon's pro-Western and pro-Iranian factions. Aoun received 99 votes out of 128 in the second round of voting. According to CNN, Hezbollah's parliamentary caucus abstained from voting in the first round as a declaration of their position on sovereignty but backed his victory in the second round to promote national unity.