STORY: Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun as the country's new president on Thursday.

The move elevates a general who enjoys U.S. approval and underscores the diminished sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group following more than a year of devastating war with Israel.

And it reflects a broader shift in the balance of power not just within Lebanon but across the wider Middle East, where Tehran has seen its allies dwindle, including last month's toppling of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Lebanon's presidency is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing system.

Deeply divided factions have meant the post has been vacant since 2022.

Aoun has been commander of the U.S.-backed Lebanese army since 2017.

On his watch, U.S. aid continued to flow to the army, part of a long-standing U.S. policy focusing on supporting state institutions to curb Hezbollah's influence.

Aoun has a key role in shoring up a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel which was brokered by Washington and Paris in November.

Lebanon has been desperately seeking international aid following a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah that escalated last summer and fall.

That violence came on the heels of a financial collapse in 2019, which the World Bank estimates cost the country $8.5 billion.

That need, and the shift in power, has revived Saudi influence in the country.

A source close to the Saudi royal court said U.S., French and Saudi envoys had told Lebanon's parliament speaker that international financial aid hinged on Aoun's election.

Lebanon's system of government requires the new president to convene consultations with lawmakers to nominate a Sunni Muslim prime minister to form a new cabinet, a process that can often be protracted as factions barter over ministerial portfolios.