Prominent diplomat, UN court chief Nawaf Salaam appointed new Prime Minister of Lebanon

Beirut: Lebanon’s new president has asked prominent diplomat and jurist Nawaf Salam to form the country’s new government, after a majority of lawmakers on Monday nominated Salam as prime minister.
The move apparently angered the Hezbollah group and its allies. Salam currently serves as the head of the International Court of Justice and was nominated by Western-backed groups as well as independent candidates in the Lebanese parliament.
Salam also has the support of Saudi Arabia and Western countries. Hezbollah legislators refrained from naming any candidate for the post of prime minister.
Salaam’s nomination is seen by many as a glimpse of hope after the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war, which left 4,000 dead and more than 16,000 injured and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in destruction. The war stopped in late November when a US-brokered 60-day ceasefire came into effect.
Shortly after Salam won a majority of legislators, some people celebrated with fireworks on the streets of Beirut, with hopes that his nomination and last week’s election of army commander General Joseph Aoun as president would bring billions in funding from foreign donors. Dollar investment and debt issuance will help.
Salaam faces a difficult mission following the ceasefire with Israel, which caused widespread destruction in the Mediterranean nation and weakened Iran-backed Hezbollah. He will also have to work on pulling the small nation out of a historic five-year economic recession.
Over the years, Hezbollah has repeatedly blocked Salam from becoming prime minister by presenting him as a US-backed candidate. Mohammed Raad, head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary faction, said, “When it comes to forcing the occupiers to leave our country, repatriating prisoners, rebuilding and implementing UN Security Council resolutions calling for an end to the Israel-Hezbollah war.” When it comes to this, we will see their actions.” , said after meeting Aun.
Raad said Hezbollah had extended its hand by electing Aoun last week and they were expecting to receive an extended hand from the other side, “but this hand was cut off.”
Aoun’s election as president last week and Salam’s nomination on Monday are likely to lead to an influx of money into Lebanon from Western and oil-rich Arab countries to help the reconstruction process. Thousands of Lebanese people have lost their savings after the country’s banking sector collapsed as a result of the economic crisis.
Neither Aoun nor Salam are considered part of the country’s political class, which is blamed for widespread corruption and mismanagement over the past decades, which in October 2019 led to the world’s worst economic recession in more than a century. Turned into one of.
Lebanon has been run by a caretaker government for more than two years and Aoun was elected after a 26-month vacancy in the presidency. After a day of consultations between Aoun and legislators, Salam received the support of 84 delegates, while outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati received nine votes.
Out of the 128-member assembly, 34 MLAs remained absent. Soon after the results came out, Mikati called Salam to congratulate him and wish him good luck for the new job.
Director General of the Presidency Antoine Shoukir said after consultations that Salam is now prime minister-designate, adding that he is currently out of Lebanon and should return in the coming hours.
A meeting between Aoun, Salam and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri was scheduled for Tuesday at the presidential palace in Baabda, a south-eastern suburb of Beirut, after which they will begin the process of forming a new Cabinet.
It was not immediately clear whether Salam planned to resign as ICJ chief. “My voice is for Nawaf Salaam because my voice is for Lebanon, not for anyone else,” independent lawmaker Paula Yacoubian told reporters after meeting with Aoun.
Salam, 71, is a member of a prominent Sunni Muslim family from Beirut and his late uncle, Saeb Salam, was one of the Lebanese leaders who fought for the country’s independence from France and later served several terms as Lebanon’s prime minister. Gave tenure. Salam’s cousin, Tammam, also served as prime minister for two years, starting in 2014.
Salam holds a doctorate in political science from France’s prestigious Sciences Po University, as well as a doctorate in history from Sorbonne University, France. He also holds a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School. Salam has worked as a lecturer at several universities, including the American University of Beirut.
In 2007, he was named Lebanon’s Ambassador to the United Nations, where he served for 10 years. In 2018, Salam was elected as a judge on the ICJ and in February last year he was elected as the court’s president, becoming the first Lebanese national to hold the post.
Salam is married to journalist Sahar Bassiri, who was for many years a columnist at Lebanon’s leading An-Nahar daily. Bassiri has been serving as Lebanon’s Ambassador to UNESCO since 2018.