Lebanese house speaker schedules president election session

Beirut, Nov 28 (IANS) Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri announced on Thursday that he has called on the parliament to convene an electoral session to elect a president for the country.

"I had vowed to myself that immediately after the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, I will set a date for a session to elect a president for the republic, so I am announcing from now that a session will be set for January 9, 2025," Berri said at the beginning of a legislative session of the parliament.

A ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah took effect early Wednesday. Following the ceasefire, a cautious calm prevailed in the border areas of southern Lebanon. However, the Israel Defense Forces conducted a "warning" strike in southern Lebanon Thursday morning. While the Israeli side said the strikes didn't cause casualties, Lebanese sources told Xinhua that two people were injured in the Israeli drone attack.

Political division in Lebanon resulted in a vacant presidential position with the end of former President Michel Aoun's term on October 31, 2022. The parliament had failed to elect a president for the country in 12 electoral sessions, Xinhua news agency reported.

A caretaker government has been running the country amid the presidential vacuum.

--IANS

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