A supporter of Lebanese presidential candidate Michel Aoun holds his portrait and the Lebanese flag ahead of a parliament session expected to elect the ex-general as president and end a political stalemate of more than two years, as they gather in Jdeidah
BEIRUT: The Lebanese parliament elected former army commander Michel Aoun as president on Monday, ending a 29-month presidential vacuum as part of a political deal that is expected to make Sunni leader Saad al-Hariri prime minister.
Aoun, who is in his 80s, secured the presidency by winning the support of at least 65 MPs, or an absolute majority of the members of the 128-seat chamber, according to a Reuters tally of votes read out in a televised broadcast from parliament.
The Lebanese presidency is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing system.
