President Michel Aoun left office a day earlier than when his six-year term ended because parliament could not agree on a successor.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun has vacated the presidential palace without a successor to replace him as the divided country struggles to recover from a years-long financial crisis.
Addressing supporters outside the Baabda presidential palace in Beirut on Sunday, the 89-year-old Christian leader, who took office in 2016, said the Middle Eastern country was entering a “demanding new chapter.” great efforts”.
“Without these efforts, we cannot end our suffering. We cannot get our country back on its feet. We cannot lift Lebanon out of this pit,” he said to cheers from supporters, leaving a day earlier than when his mission was over.
Lebanon’s parliament has so far been unable to agree on who should take the role – the body that has the power to sign bills into law, appoint new prime ministers and give the green light to form a government before they can. voted on by parliament.
Lebanon has been run by a caretaker cabinet appointed by prime minister Najib Mikati, which has been trying to form a government for six months.
‘An unlucky president’
Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem report from Baabda said the country’s people had “mixed feelings” about Aoun’s six-year rule.
“Michel Aoun supporters say he is an unlucky president. His opponents… say he has failed and is a huge disappointment,” added Hashem.
“Michel Aoun’s era that will end on Monday will always be remembered because explosion at the port of Beirut in 2020 … And both the financial crisis and the protests that began in 2019. These are key aspects of his legacy. “
More than 220 people were killed and about 6,500 injured in the 2020 explosion. About 300,000 homes were damaged or destroyed.
The financial crisis of 2019 pushed more than 80% of the population into poverty and led to the most widespread anti-government protests in recent history.
Aoun is a deeply divisive figure beloved by many Christians, who see him as their protector in Lebanon’s sectarian system but accused by critics of facilitating for corruption and helping the Shia armed group Hezbollah gain influence.
He has secured the presidency in 2016was confirmed by both Hezbollah and rival Maronite politician Christian Samir Geagea in a deal to return then-leading Sunni politician Saad al-Hariri as prime minister.
During his last week in the palace, he signed a US-brokered deal demarcate Lebanon’s southern maritime border with Israel.
The son of a farmer from the outskirts of Beirut, Aoun’s path to the presidency dates back to the 1975-90 civil war, in which he served as commander of the Lebanese army and head of one of two governments. enemy government.
He returned to Beirut after 15 years in exile, after Syrian forces withdrew under international pressure following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in 2005.
In 2006, his Liberal Patriotic Movement party formed an alliance with Hezbollah, which enables the important pro-Christian armed group. In an interview with Reuters news agency, Aoun credited Hezbollah for its “helpful” role in playing a “defensive” role against any Israeli attack during negotiations over maritime borders. .
