By Nurat Uthman
Lebanon’s lawmakers elected on Thursday army chief Joseph Aoun as president after a two-year vacancy of the position, in a step towards lifting the war-battered country out of financial crisis.
Aoun, who turns 61 on Friday, arrived inside parliament to swear his oath to general applause, wearing a dark suit and bright blue tie instead of his usual military uniform.
“A new phase in the history of Lebanon begins today,” he told the chamber.
Supporters erupted in celebration in his home village of Aishiyeh in south Lebanon, where residents had gathered from the morning in front of the church which was adorned with Lebanese flags and his portrait, an AFP reporter said.
“The president is Joseph Aoun,” Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said after 99 lawmakers out of 128 backed his candidacy.
Aoun faces the daunting tasks of overseeing a ceasefire on the Israeli border and naming a prime minister to lead reforms demanded by international creditors to save the country from the worst economic crisis of its history.
Aoun is Lebanon’s fifth army commander to become president and the fourth in a row.
Under multi-confessional Lebanon’s power-sharing system, the president must be a Maronite Christian, as do military chiefs.
