Hours after truce, Berri calls for effort to fill presidency
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called Wednesday for another effort to fill the country’s long-vacant presidency just hours after a ceasefire to halt hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel went into effect.
Lebanon has been without a president since October 2022, as its deeply divided parliament has been unable to elect a new head of state. The last effort to elect a president was more than a year ago.
Berri called for political parties to come together to elect a president “who unites rather than divides.”
“I call upon you because a moment of truth in which we must unite for the sake of Lebanon has arrived,” Berri said in a televised address.
“This is a test for how we can save Lebanon. How we can build it and how we can bring back life for its constitutional institutions.”
The war compounded Lebanon’s economic troubles and worsened tensions between political groups allied and opposed to Hezbollah.
Berri spearheaded Lebanon’s negotiation efforts for a U.S.-brokered ceasefire to end the war. He’s a top Shiite politician and a key ally of Hezbollah.
Berri called on those displaced by Israel's war to return home.
"I invite you to return to your homes... return to your land," said Berri, despite warnings to the contrary from Lebanon and Israel's militaries.
Source: Associated Press
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