Lebanon President Joseph Aoun begins talks with MPs to pick next PM

Two clear frontrunners have emerged, including incumbent Najib Mikati

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun has begun binding consultations with the country's 128 MPs on who to designate as the next prime minister.

Mr Aoun began meeting with MPs individually at the presidential palace in Baabda – starting with deputy parliament speaker Elias Bou Saab and then a number of independent MPs. He will later meet the leading political parties.

The new prime minister will have the responsibility of steering Lebanon through several challenges, including rebuilding efforts and ensuring that a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel holds.

Hezbollah and its ally the Amal Movement, led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, have signalled that they will back incumbent Najib Mikati.

After Mr Aoun was elected last week, Mr Mikati said he was ready to serve as prime minister again if asked.

Opponents of Mr Mikati say he is part of the old regime, having been prime minister for three terms.

One of the wealthiest businessmen in Lebanon, Mr Mikati has often been suggested during political deadlocks as a consensus candidate acceptable to Lebanon's entrenched political blocs. While his supporters praise his experience and pragmatism, critics argue that his leadership has failed to deliver reforms during Lebanon’s economic collapse.

A coalition of MPs and parties broadly opposed to Hezbollah announced they would support Nawaf Salam, president at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

MP Fouad Makhzoumi announced on Monday he was withdrawing from the race and supporting Mr Salam.

Mr Makhzoumi is an influential member of the coalition opposed to Hezbollah. He had received the support of parliament's largest party, the Lebanese Forces. Mr Makhzoumi said he did not want to split the vote of the opposition.

Mr Salam is a diplomat, legal scholar and former ambassador of Lebanon to the United Nations who served as Lebanon’s permanent representative at the UN from 2007 to 2017.

Known for his technocratic expertise and reformist stance, he has gained support from opposition factions that view him as a figure capable of introducing institutional change.

He is also a favourite of anti-Hezbollah MPs, with his candidacy regarded as a possible break from traditional political alliances.

According to Lebanon's constitution, the president designates the prime minister in consultation with the parliament speaker, choosing the candidate with the most votes during the consultations.

Under the country's unique confessional system, the prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim.

Nominating a candidate does not guarantee a new government will be formed.

The process has taken months given deep political divisions and trading within a parliament where no party or bloc holds a majority.

Mr Aoun's election came at a time of significant international pressure, particularly from the US and Saudi Arabia, and ended a two-and-a-half-year power vacuum.

Many are hopeful that his appointment marks a new chapter in Lebanon's history, recently marred by war, economic collapse and deep distrust and widespread dissatisfaction with the ruling classes.