Lebanon postpones parliamentary elections by two years

Lebanon’s parliament on Monday (March 9, 2026) postponed legislative elections by two years, in line with an announcement from the parliament speaker, as a result of warfare between Israel and Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

Lebanon was drawn into the Center East warfare final week when Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei throughout U.S.-Israeli strikes.

“Parliament accepted the extension of its time period for 2 years,” an announcement from parliament speaker and key Hezbollah ally Nabih Berri learn, after the polls have been initially because of be held in Might.

MPs convened whilst Israeli warplanes flew above the close by southern suburbs of Beirut.

A number of lawmakers of Hezbollah’s 13-member bloc have been current, together with its head Mohammed Raad, an AFP photographer noticed.

Lebanon has postponed elections on a number of events up to now.

It did so twice between 2013 and 2014, citing political divisions in Lebanon stemming from the warfare in neighbouring Syria, and a 3rd time in 2017 because of a dispute over the electoral legislation.

Over the last election in 2022, Hezbollah and its allies misplaced their parliamentary majority towards conventional opponents and impartial candidates born out of Lebanon’s 2019 protest motion.

Parliament stays closely divided between the 2 camps.

Earlier than the outbreak of the newest warfare between Hezbollah and Israel, political forces hostile to the group, with American encouragement, sought the postponement of parliamentary elections, a diplomatic supply mentioned on the time.

The transfer to delay the polls got here because the Lebanese authorities additionally dedicated to disarming Hezbollah.

It was opposed by the group because it sought to reassert its political presence after the foremost losses it suffered towards Israel.