The commander-in-chief of the army, Joseph Aoun, on March 7, 2024. Photo taken from the military institution's X account.
A few weeks before the expiration of the mandate of the army's commander-in-chief, Joseph Aoun — extended at the end of 2023 until January 2025 — , everything suggests that the same scenario as last year will unfold in 2024. The plan focuses on retaining Joseph Aoun and all security chiefs in their positions for one year, despite strong opposition from Free Patriotic Movement leader Gebran Bassil and criticism from Hezbollah, particularly after Israel’s kidnapping of a sailor in Batroun, North Lebanon, who was reportedly close to the party. Because for the international community, particularly Washington, it is out of the question to risk a vacancy at the head of the Lebanese Army, either during the war or after the conclusion of a cease-fire. The National Moderation bloc, mostly composed of former Sunni ex-Hariri MPs, initiated the...
A few weeks before the expiration of the mandate of the army's commander-in-chief, Joseph Aoun — extended at the end of 2023 until January 2025 — , everything suggests that the same scenario as last year will unfold in 2024. The plan focuses on retaining Joseph Aoun and all security chiefs in their positions for one year, despite strong opposition from Free Patriotic Movement leader Gebran Bassil and criticism from Hezbollah, particularly after Israel’s kidnapping of a sailor in Batroun, North Lebanon, who was reportedly close to the party. Because for the international community, particularly Washington, it is out of the question to risk a vacancy at the head of the Lebanese Army, either during the war or after the conclusion of a cease-fire. The National Moderation bloc, mostly composed of former Sunni ex-Hariri MPs, initiated...
