Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who has U.S. support and showing the weakened sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel.

Lebanon’s parliament has elected its US-backed army chief to be the country’s next president, ending a years-long political stalemate and presidential vacuum.

Though Lebanon’s presidency is mostly symbolic, it has a few important powers, like approving prime ministers and cabinets. In a country still haunted by the memory of civil war, symbolism is important too: how the head of state is chosen says much about the balance of power in Lebanon’s factious politics.

Lebanon's parliament elected the former army commander president after a two-year vacancy for the head of state.

Lebanon’s parliament chose the country’s army commander, Joseph Aoun, as head of state, filling a more than two-year-long presidential vacuum.

Lebanon's parliament convened on Thursday to elect a new head of state, aiming to fill a post which has been vacant since 2022, with political sources expecting army commander General Joseph Aoun to be elected.

The outcome showed the diminished sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group after its devastating war with Israel.

Lebanon elected army commander Joseph Aoun as the country’s first president in more than two years, picking a US-backed candidate in a sign of Iran’s waning influence in the region.