Lebanon presidential hopeful slams Hezbollah ‘stranglehold’ on country

Lebanese politician Michel Moawad urges lawmakers to back his bid for the presidency, denouncing Hezbollah’s “stranglehold” on the crisis-hit country.

MPs have been unable to pick a successor to President Michel Aoun whose term ends next week, stoking fears of a political crisis that would further compound three years of economic meltdown.

“I am practically the only serious candidate running for the presidency,” Moawad tells AFP in an interview, adding that he has “support from a large majority of the opposition.”

Moawad, 50, is the presidential candidate who received the largest backing in Lebanon’s divided parliament, mostly from lawmakers opposed to the powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group.

But he is still far from securing the number of votes needed to snatch the position.

“To change the balance of power, we must first unite the opposition, because we are divided,” said Moawad.

He said that “Hezbollah’s stranglehold” on Lebanon has pushed the country further into “Iran’s sphere of influence” and accused the group of trying to impose a candidate who abides by its rules.