Lebanon's president forms new government as southern ceasefire holds

Lebanon’s new prime minister on Saturday formed the country’s first full-fledged government since 2022.

President Joseph Aoun announced in a statement that he had accepted the resignation of the former caretaker government and signed a decree with new Prime Minister Nawaf Salam forming the new government.

Mr. Salam vowed to “restore confidence between citizens and the state, between Lebanon and its Arab surroundings, and between Lebanon and the international community” and to implement reforms needed to bring the country out of an extended economic crisis.

“Reform is the only path to a true salvation,” he said in a speech on Saturday.

He also promised to follow up on the implementation of a ceasefire agreement that ended the most recent war between Israel and the Lebanese militant group and political party Hezbollah in late November and to ensure that Israeli forces “withdraw from Lebanese territory until the last inch.” He pledged to ensure reconstruction in areas that suffered destruction during the war.

Mr. Salam’s cabinet of 24 ministers, split evenly between Christian and Muslim sects, was formed less than a month after he was appointed. It comes at a time when Lebanon is scrambling to rebuild its battered southern region and maintain security along its borders.

Lebanon is also still in the throes of a crippling economic crisis, now in its sixth year, which has battered its banks, destroyed its state electricity sector, and left many in poverty, unable to access their savings.

Mr. Salam, a diplomat and former president of the International Court of Justice, has vowed to reform Lebanon’s judiciary and battered economy and bring about stability in the troubled country, which has faced numerous economic, political, and security crises for decades.

New government marks a shift away from Hezbollah

Though Hezbollah did not endorse Mr. Salam as prime minister, the Lebanese group did engage in negotiations with the new prime minister over the Shiite Muslim seats in government, as per Lebanon’s power-sharing system.

That was despite comments by U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus who said in a speech in Beirut Friday that Washington had “set clear red lines from the United States” that Hezbollah would not be “a part of the government.” The comments drew backlash from many in Lebanon who saw them as meddling in internal Lebanese affairs.

Lebanon’s new authorities also mark a shift away from leaders that are close to Hezbollah, as Beirut hopes to continue improving ties with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations that have been concerned by Hezbollah’s growing political and military power over the past decade.

In early January, former army chief Mr. Aoun was elected president, ending that position’s vacuum. He was also a candidate not endorsed by Hezbollah and key allies.

Mr. Aoun has shared similar sentiments to Mr. Salam, also vowing to consolidate the state’s right to “monopolize the carrying of weapons,” in an apparent reference to the arms of Hezbollah.

Clashes on eastern border continue

While the formation of a government appeared to be a sign of hope for the country's future stability, Lebanon is still facing a tense security situation on more than one front.

Clashes broke out ongoing on the eastern border with Syria earlier this week between Lebanese clans and the security forces of the new Syrian government, which are largely made up of former members of the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al Sham.

The porous border has long been a conduit for the smuggling of people, weapons, and drugs. Syrian officials said security forces were cracking down on smuggling gangs.

The Lebanese army said Saturday that several Lebanese areas had been “subjected to shelling and gunfire” from Syria and that it had given orders for soldiers stationed in the border area to “respond to sources of fire launched from Syrian territory.”

Ceasefire agreement extended

Separately, six people were killed and two injured in an Israeli drone strike Saturday in the area of Janata, near the eastern border with Syria, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it had struck “Hezbollah operatives” who “were operating in a strategic weapons manufacturing and storage site” belonging to the militant group.

Israel has continued to launch near-daily strikes on what it says are Hezbollah facilities in Lebanon since the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. The deal stipulates that both Israel and Lebanon maintain the right to act in “self-defense” but does not define what qualifies as self-defense.

The original 60-day deadline for implementing the terms of the ceasefire agreement expired in late January, but Lebanon and Israel agreed to extend it until Feb. 18.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.