[caption id="attachment_54052" align="alignright" width="152"] United Nations Security Council in session (file photo)[/caption]
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has urged the Lebanese parliament to immediately choose a new president as the Arab country is threatened by the spillover of the foreign-backed conflict in neighboring Syria.
In a statement on Wednesday, the 15-member council "expressed concern at the prolonged vacancy in the office of the presidency with a view to preserving the stability and the unity of Lebanon".
Australian Ambassador Gary Quinlan, whose country currently chairs the top UN body, strongly urged Lebanon to show "urgency and flexibility" and “move without delay” to agree on a successor to Michel Sleiman as the Arab country has been without a head of state, who is also the commander-in-chief, for more than five months.
The Lebanese parliament has failed to pick a new president since Suleiman’s term came to an end in May.
The Australian envoy said Lebanon was facing a growing threat from militants in Syria while struggling to deal with a massive refugee influx, adding that refugees constituted some 30 percent of Lebanon's population.
Lebanon has been rocked by the spillover of the conflict in Syria, where the ISIL Takfiri terrorists are operating.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011 with the ISIL Takfiri terrorists currently controlling parts of it, mostly in east and north.
By Press TV
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