\nPrior to the elections, Aoun was expected to secure victory in the first round. However, after receiving only 71 votes, he failed to secure the required majority of 86 out of 128 votes. A second round was held, where he ultimately won with a majority of 99 votes. However, since he was elected in the second round, Lebanese law mandates that lawmakers must amend the constitution in order to allow him to serve concurrently as both president and Chief of Staff.<\/p>\n
Hezbollah initially refused to support Aoun\u2019s candidacy, but withdrew its opposition this week via its parliamentary representatives. Hezbollah\u2019s previous preferred candidate Suleiman Frangieh announced his withdrawal from the race yesterday, and expressed his support for Aoun\u2019s candidacy.<\/p>\n
Israel Sends a Message of Support<\/strong> Foreign Minister Gideon Sa\u2019ar extended his congratulations on his social media account, posting: “I congratulate Lebanon upon the election of a new President, following a lengthy political crisis. I hope that this choice will contribute towards stability, a better future for Lebanon and its people and to good neighborly relations.”<\/p>\n Due to the Lebanese Chief of Staff\u2019s election and the upcoming inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump later this month, Israeli officials are optimistic that a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon can be maintained, along with better control over security conditions in the north.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After two years without a president and 13 election attempts, the Chief of Staff of the Lebanese Army has been appointed as the country\u2019s president. Gideon Sa\u2019ar offered his congratulations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12838,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2277,8,6],"tags":[1521,1544,1480,1578],"class_list":["post-12836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history","category-politics","category-security","tag-election","tag-hezbollah","tag-israel","tag-lebanon"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nIsrael has conveyed messages to Beirut\u2019s political circles expressing “support” for Aoun\u2019s presidential bid, as well as receptivity to a security cooperation with him.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/2-8.jpg\")