The weakening of Hezbollah in last year's war with Israel allowed Lebanon's long deadlocked parliament to reach consensus around a president who has the confidence of the international community. Deadlock in parliament between pro- and anti-Hezbollah blocs had stalemated a dozen previous attempts to elect a president,

Lebanon's parliament, led by Speaker Nabih Berri, paused a presidential election session for further consultations after the candidate, Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun, failed to secure the necessary 86 votes in the first round.

Lebanon's newly elected president, Joseph Aoun, said Thursday that "a new phase" has started for the war-ravaged country and pledged to rebuild the state, adopt a policy of "positive neutrality" and fight corruption.

Lebanese lawmakers elected army chief Joseph Aoun as president on Thursday, ending a more than two-year vacancy and marking a step towards lifting the war-battered country out of financial meltdown.Aoun,

Lebanese political heavyweights held talks Wednesday a day ahead of a parliamentary session to elect a president, but even with key player Hezbollah weakened by war, there is no guarantee of consensus.

The Lebanese parliament finally voted on a new president on Thursday following two years of deadlock. Joseph Aoun the head of the country's armed forces won a majority of the votes.

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Reflecting the shifts, Hezbollah and its ally the Shi'ite Amal Movement led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri have dropped their insistence on Suleiman Frangieh, their declared ca

Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who has U.S. support and showing the weakened sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel.