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Lebanon Elects Army Chief as New President

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
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Lebanon Elects Army Chief as New President

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)

Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who enjoys US approval and showing the diminished sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel.
The outcome reflected shifts in the power balance in Lebanon and the wider Middle East, with Hezbollah badly pummelled from last year's war, and its Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad toppled in December.
The presidency, reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, has been vacant since Michel Aoun's term ended in October 2022, with deeply divided factions unable to agree on a candidate able to win enough votes in the 128-seat parliament.
Aoun fell short of the 86 votes needed in a first round vote, but crossed the threshold with 99 votes in a second round, according to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, after lawmakers from Hezbollah and its Shiite ally the Amal Movement backed him.
Momentum built behind Aoun on Wednesday as Hezbollah's long preferred candidate, Suleiman Franjieh, withdrew and declared support for the army commander, and as French envoy shuttled around Beirut, urging his election in meetings with politicians, three Lebanese political sources said.
Aoun's election is a first step towards reviving government institutions in a country which has had neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet since Aoun left office.
Lebanon, its economy still reeling from a devastating financial collapse in 2019, is in dire need of international support to rebuild from the war, which the World Bank estimates cost the country $8.5 billion.
Lebanon's system of government requires the new president to convene consultations with lawmakers to nominate a Sunni Muslim prime minister to form a new cabinet, a process that can often be protracted as factions barter over ministerial portfolios.
Aoun has a key role in shoring up a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel which was brokered by Washington and Paris in November. The terms require the Lebanese military to deploy into south Lebanon as Israeli troops and Hezbollah withdraw forces.
Aoun, 60, has been commander of the Lebanese army since 2017. 
 

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Arab World

School Year Delay Sparks Widespread Debate in Iraq

Iraqi students sing the national anthem at a school in western Baghdad in October 2023 (AFP) 
Iraqi students sing the national anthem at a school in western Baghdad in October 2023 (AFP) 
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School Year Delay Sparks Widespread Debate in Iraq

Iraqi students sing the national anthem at a school in western Baghdad in October 2023 (AFP) 
Iraqi students sing the national anthem at a school in western Baghdad in October 2023 (AFP) 

The Iraqi Education Ministry’s decision to postpone the start of the 2026-27 academic year has sparked widespread debate over the real reasons behind the move, which coincides with the scheduled withdrawal of US-led coalition forces and the start of a process intended to bring armed factions’ weapons under state control.

The ministry announced Tuesday that the school year, originally scheduled to begin Sept. 20, would instead start Oct. 11.

The postponement could cost students nearly a month of the academic year and prevent them from completing the curriculum, particularly those in final grades at the primary, intermediate, and secondary levels.

Education observers say the nine-month school year is already increasingly vulnerable to being shortened by numerous official holidays and breaks associated with religious occasions.

Speculation has linked the postponement to Sept. 30, the date set for the withdrawal of international coalition forces from Iraq and a deadline for bringing weapons under state control, amid widespread talk among activists and bloggers of possible clashes.

The Education Ministry, however, cited four main reasons for the postponement, none involving the foreign troop withdrawal or disarmament.

In a statement, Education Minister Abdul Karim Abtan al-Jubouri explained that the delay would allow time to complete second-round examinations for students in non-graduating classes and prepare schools for the new academic year.

The ministry added that the decision also took into account high temperatures during this period and the need to complete educational, technical and administrative requirements before students return to schools across Iraq.

Amid public criticism of the postponement, ministry spokesman Karim al-Sayed provided further reasons, explaining that the previously announced Sept. 20 start date had proved too early and had been based on circumstances that subsequently changed.

These included the introduction of comprehensive admission and a special examination round scheduled from Sept. 26 to Oct. 10, as well as second-round examinations that began Sept. 15 and continue through Sept. 24.

Al-Sayed added that the decision followed appeals from teaching staff over the lack of electricity in some schools and high temperatures, as well as a proposal by parliament’s Education Committee to postpone classes.

The committee had previously called for the academic year to be postponed, but its proposal was for October 1 rather than October 11.

Sept. 30 concerns

A senior Education Ministry source believes the coincidence between the postponement and the government’s Sept. 30 deadline for bringing factions’ weapons under state control — also the scheduled date for the coalition withdrawal — fueled speculation that the two were linked, something the ministry denies.

“Fluctuations in the start date of the school year are nothing new. Classes were delayed by about a month during the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to delays related to special-round examinations,” the source, who requested anonymity, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Education specialist Mustafa Abada argued that the ministry’s reasons for postponing the school year “need further clarification, particularly as other educational issues remain unresolved, including delays in the delivery of some textbooks, changes to several curricula, problems with school buildings and infrastructure, as well as the continuation of special-round examinations.”

Asked about speculation linking the postponement to political and security circumstances, Abada told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The timing raises questions about whether there are concerns that potential security developments could affect regular school attendance. But that does not necessarily mean there is a connection between the two.”

Arab World

US Again Denies Palestinian Leader Abbas Visa to Attend UN Assembly

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
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US Again Denies Palestinian Leader Abbas Visa to Attend UN Assembly

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP)

The United States has denied Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas an entry visa to attend the UN General Assembly in New York next week, a source familiar with the case said Wednesday.

In a separate statement that did not mention Abbas by name, the State Department said it would deny visas to members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and officials with the Palestinian Authority (PA), "as a consequence of their failure to reform, contrary to their commitments to the United States, and their ongoing activities that undermine the prospects for peace."

A source familiar with the matter confirmed to AFP that the Palestinian Authority president, Abbas, was covered by the measure.

The Trump administration took the same step last year, forcing the Palestinian leader, a regular at the UN General Assembly, to address the body of global leadership by video.

In its statement Wednesday, the State Department said that the PLO and PA had "once again, failed to live up to their commitments."

"This includes initiating and supporting actions at international organizations that undermine and contradict prior commitments," the department also said.

Washington also accused the organizations of "taking actions to internationalize the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict including through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ), seeking to bypass negotiations through seeking unilateral recognition, and continuing to pay stipends to terrorists and to glorify acts of terrorism and terrorists in public pronouncements and school textbooks."

The move puts the United States at odds with numerous countries, including France, that recognized a Palestinian state at the United Nations last year.

A total of 142 UN member states endorsed it following the conference on a two-state solution co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.

The decision comes as violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians has escalated in recent months in the West Bank.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and violence there has surged since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip.

According to an AFP tally based on Palestinian health ministry data, Israeli soldiers or settlers have killed at least 1,109 Palestinians in the West Bank -- fighters and civilians -- since October 7, 2023, when a Hamas-led attack killed more than 1,200 people.

The ensuing Israeli military campaign waged relentless strikes on Gaza that have killed more than 73,700 people, according to Gaza's health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.

The international community has expressed concern over the violence, but the United States has remained largely quiet on the issue, saying only that the US government opposes any annexation of Palestinian territory.

Arab World

Leaders from Lebanon, France and Jordan to Discuss Struggling Lebanese Military

File photo: Lebanese army members stand on a military vehicle during a Lebanese army media tour, to review the army's operations in the southern Litani sector, in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, November 28, 2025. (Reuters)
File photo: Lebanese army members stand on a military vehicle during a Lebanese army media tour, to review the army's operations in the southern Litani sector, in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, November 28, 2025. (Reuters)
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Leaders from Lebanon, France and Jordan to Discuss Struggling Lebanese Military

File photo: Lebanese army members stand on a military vehicle during a Lebanese army media tour, to review the army's operations in the southern Litani sector, in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, November 28, 2025. (Reuters)
File photo: Lebanese army members stand on a military vehicle during a Lebanese army media tour, to review the army's operations in the southern Litani sector, in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, November 28, 2025. (Reuters)

The heads of state of Lebanon, France and Jordan will meet Thursday in Paris as part of an effort to drum up support for the struggling Lebanese military.

A donor conference for Lebanon's cash-strapped army was initially set to take place in February, led by France, Saudi Arabia and the United States. However, it was postponed following the eruption of the Iran war and the latest round of the Israel-Hezbollah war, The Associated Press said.

The Lebanese army has now found itself caught between the Israeli military — now occupying much of southern Lebanon — and Hezbollah. The militant group has refused calls to give up its weapons.

In June, the Lebanese and Israeli governments announced a framework agreement under which Israel would withdraw gradually from southern Lebanon and the Lebanese army would assume control, while Hezbollah would be disarmed. Implementation of the deal has stalled.

Thursday's meeting in Paris will center on preparing the ground for a donor conference. It will also focus on the situation in southern Lebanon and plans for an international presence there after the mandate of the UN peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL expires at the end of the year, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun's office said in a statement.

Hezbollah was severely weakened in the last war that ended in November 2024, and Lebanon subsequently elected Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, who committed to disarming Hezbollah and other non-state armed groups in the country.

Lebanon has been criticized by Israel and the United States for not taking direct military action to force the militant group to disarm.

Lebanese officials are wary of a confrontation between the army and Hezbollah, fearing it could spiral into a civil war. The government has also insisted it needs a larger and better-equipped military to deploy across Lebanon and win over Hezbollah’s supporters who question the army’s ability to protect them.

The small Mediterranean country’s military is underfunded and underequipped, for years relying heavily on international donors, notably the United States, United Kingdom, France and Italy.

Many soldiers had left the military or worked second jobs since the country’s fiscal crisis in late 2019, which affected state institutions that once provided decent salaries and benefits, and locked the savings of millions in the banks. The military has struggled to adequately pay salaries as inflation soars and state budgets shrink.