Lebanon

Berri re-elected parliamentary speaker

Article published on the 2009-06-25 Latest update 2009-06-25 12:27 TU

Supporters hold uip a poster of Nabih Berri missing Shi'ite Imam Moussa al-Sader in Beirut, 25 June 2009.
(Photo: Reuters/Jamal Saidi)

Lebanon's parliament on Thursday re-elected a Shi’ite leader, Nabih Beri as parliamentary speaker. Berri, one of the most influential politicals in the country, won 90 out of the 128 votes in the parliament.

Berri pledged to promote reforms and urged rival Lebanese factions to form a national unity government.

His Amal movement maintains a solid alliance with the rival Shiite group Hezbollah although the two have locked horns in the past. Their alliance was defeated by a pro-Western bloc in the recent elections.

Berri's rise to power has mirrored the Shiite community's increasing prominence in Lebanon.

The 71 -year-old has held a pivotal role since the end of Lebanon's 14-year civil war that ended in 1990. He was first elected as parliamentary speaker in 1992, then re-election in 1996 and again in 2000 during the deployment of Syrian troops in Lebanon.

He was a key pro-Syrian militia chief during the civil war.

Berri was born in Sierra Leone into a family that had emigrated from the south of Lebanon.