Lebanese parliament on Thursday elected General Joseph Aoun as president after more than two years of political deadlock
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will start next week the parliamentary consultations to appoint a new prime minister.
On Thursday, the Lebanese parliament elected General Joseph Aoun as president after more than two years of political deadlock.
According to a statement by the Lebanese Presidency, Aoun will start on Monday the parliamentary consultations in the presidential palace of Baabda, eastern Beirut, to name a prime minister and to form a new government.
Following the consultations, Aoun will issue a presidential decree on naming a prime minister who gains the confidence of the majority of the parliament.
Despite the fact that the parliamentary consultations are mandatory, the president (Aoun) is not bound by its results.
At a press conference following a meeting between Aoun and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Thursday, Mikati revealed that President Aoun had asked him to continue overseeing government affairs until a new administration was formed.
According to the Lebanese Constitution, the president must be a Maronite Christian, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim, and the parliamentary speaker a Shia Muslim.
Aoun was elected at a time when political tensions in the Middle East have been increasing, with Israel continuing its genocidal attack on the Gaza Strip and regularly assaulting neighboring Syria and Lebanon.
Lebanese authorities have reported more than 430 Israeli violations of the cease-fire, including the deaths of 34 people and the injury of 41 others, since the deal came into force on Nov. 27.
