Lebanon’s parliament elected Maronite Christian Michel Aoun to the presidency on Monday, ending a 29-month vacuum and sealing control of the country for the Hezbollah terrorist group.
Aoun, a former military commander who is now age 81, had made a formal alliance on behalf of his Free Patriotic Movement with the Iranian-backed terror organization back in 2006.
His election also secures a win for Sunni Muslim leader and former prime minister Sa’ad Hariri, leader of the “March 14 Coalition,” now positioned to renew his role as the country’s prime minister.
Hariri was quoted as saying his endorsement of Aoun was necessary “to protect Lebanon, protect the [political] system, protect the state and protect the Lebanese people.”
In his victory speech, Aoun vowed to “free what remains of our lands from the Israeli occupiers.” The reference is a claim to the disputed territories along Israeli’s northern border and the international “blue line” set by the United Nations.
He also pledged to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in that nation’s ongoing five-year-long civil war, which Hezbollah has also fought to supplement the regime forces, along with Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps forces, and Russian armed forces.
Nearly half a million people have died in Syria since the start of hostilities there in March 2011.