Nawaf Salam is to be Prime Minister of Lebanon

Shafaq News/ Following the completion of Lebanon's binding parliamentary consultations to appoint a new prime minister, it has been confirmed that Nawaf Salam, President of the International Court of Justice, will be designated as prime minister, having secured a parliamentary majority with 84 votes.

Since the announcement of the binding consultations, which are held in two phases before and after noon, political factions have discussed several potential candidates for the prime minister position, traditionally held by a Sunni figure in Lebanon.

In recent days, several candidates withdrew in favor of supporting Salam, including MP Ibrahim Mneimneh, followed by MP Fouad Makhzoumi.

Initially, opposition groups, including the Lebanese Forces and other smaller blocs, announced on Saturday their decision to nominate MP Fouad Makhzoumi for prime minister. However, independent and opposition MPs later expressed their support for the candidacy of Nawaf Salam, a seasoned diplomat whose name frequently emerges during parliamentary consultations.

The "Strong Lebanon Bloc," comprising 13 MPs, the "Democratic Gathering" with 8 MPs, and the "Moderation Bloc," with a Sunni majority, also joined the opposition and independent MPs in backing Salam’s nomination.

Reports indicated that Druze leader Walid Jumblatt called Prime Minister Najib Mikati to inform him of his decision not to nominate him.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah’s "Loyalty to Resistance" bloc decided not to nominate any candidate for the premiership.

The bloc had requested to delay its consultation from today to tomorrow, but President Aoun rejected the postponement.

Should the designated prime minister fail to receive any votes from the Shiite lawmakers, some have raised concerns over the issue of political legitimacy and the representation of Shiite interests in the next government.

Nawaf Salam, born in 1953, is a Lebanese judge, diplomat, and academic. He served as Lebanon’s permanent representative to the United Nations for 10 years and represented his country on the UN Security Council. In 2018, he was elected as a judge at the International Court of Justice, and on February 6, 2024, he was elected president of the court for a three-year term, succeeding U.S. judge Joan E. Donoghue. He became the second Arab to hold this position after former Algerian Foreign Minister Mohamed Bedjaoui.