Beirut
Aoun is an ally of the Iran-backed Hezbollah Shiite movement, an organization that wields significant influence in Lebanon and supports the government of Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria.
He received 83 votes out of the 127 deputies present at the second round of voting, during which a simple majority was required.
Aoun’s followers held celebrations across the country. Supporters filled Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut, and cars with his image roamed the streets of the capital while passengers chanted “Lebanon will now be safe.”
“National unity is the basis of the stability and security of the country,” Aoun said at a parliamentary session where he was sworn into office, becoming Lebanon’s 13th president since the country gained independence from France in 1943.
He will consult with parliamentary blocs on Wednesday and Thursday on the naming of a new prime minister, a statement by the presidential palace said.
At his speech in parliament, Aoun also addressed security, the economy and his plan to return more than 1 million refugees who have fled to Lebanon from war-ravaged Syria.
Schools and universities were ordered closed on Monday, as the army imposed tight security measures across Lebanon.
Aoun moved to the presidential in Baabda, northeast of Beirut, where he will reside during his six-year term.
Streets across the capital Beirut were filled with posters of Aoun and the orange flags of his political Party, The Free Patriotic Movement.
Aoun’s election was made possible after former premier Saad Hariri, who is backed by Saudi Arabia and also has the largest bloc in parliament, announced its support for his nomination. In return, Hariri is likely to become prime minister.
Walid Jumblatt, a leader of the Druze religious minority, said after the election that “all Lebanese politicians should work to turn over a new page for the country.”
The Lebanese presidency is usually held by a Maronite Christian in the country’s sectarian power-sharing arrangement while the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim and the speaker of parliament a Shiite Muslim. The presidential post has been vacant since former president Michel Suleiman’s term ended in May 2014.
Lebanon’s parliamentary speaker, Nabil Berri, a close ally of Hezbollah, has openly opposed Aoun’s candidacy for presidency, but has said that he will not boycott the session.
According to analyst Amin Amoriyeh, Aoun’s election puts an end to the political stagnation but warns sectarian divides remain firmly entrenched.
“Having a new president in the presidential palace will not solve all the political problems in the country. The remaining will be to have a premier and form a new government without delays and obstacles,” Amoriyeh said.
Hezbollah, which nominated and backed Aoun, has been fighting alongside President Assad against rebels seeking to oust him since 2011. The election of Aoun is seen by many observers as a victory for Hezbollah over the Saudi and Western backed military coalition in the country.
An army commander during Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war, Aoun is known to have aspired to the presidential post. He is the fourth Lebanese president from a military background.
Aoun was one of the first Lebanese voices to rise against the Syrian military presence in Lebanon during the 1990s. He had to live in self-imposed exile in Paris until 2005 when Syria pulled out following the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri.
He returned to Lebanon, but fell out with his former allies, the anti-Syrian Western-backed coalition, and struck up an alliance with the pro-Syrian Iranian Hezbollah movement.
“Congratulations to General Aoun, the Lebanese people and all parties in the country,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said in a statement carried by Fars news agency.
Aoun also received a series of congratulatory phone calls from world leaders, among them French President Francois Holland, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sissi as well as the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and Syria’s Assad.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the election and encouraged the formation “without delay of a government that can effectively serve the needs of all Lebanese citizens and address the serious challenges facing the country.”