Who is Nawaf Salam, Lebanon’s PM-designate amid political shift?

The appointment of Nawaf Salam, President of the International Court of Justice, as Prime Minister of Lebanon has sparked optimism among many Lebanese. His successful garnering of sufficient votes in Parliament on Monday marks a period of rapid political change for Lebanon, following the election of Joseph Aoun as President last week, filling the presidential vacancy that had existed since 2022.

Aoun designated Salam to form a government on Monday, and he is set to serve as Prime Minister at least until Lebanon's next parliamentary elections in 2026. His victory is viewed as a boost to the reform movement, after Salam failed to secure enough votes in 2022, losing the premiership to Najib Mikati, whom he now replaces.

The reform movement, which began on October 17, 2019, with mass protests in the streets, sees Salam as someone who can represent them. While he is a member of a prominent Beirut family, he has not held political office within the country, instead holding high-ranking positions abroad. "He represents the aspirations of the October 17 movement," Lebanese journalist and writer Dalal Mawad told Al Jazeera. "This is a person with a very clear political vision and convictions."

Salam made his priorities clear in his first address as Prime Minister-designate on Tuesday. “We have wasted many opportunities to build the country,” he said. “Enough is enough, no more wasted opportunities.” Born in Beirut in 1953, Salam began his career in academia, serving as a lecturer at universities including the American University of Beirut, the Sorbonne in Paris, and Harvard University in the US.

From 2007 to 2017, he served as Lebanon's ambassador to the United Nations, where, according to Mawad, he “created a foreign policy when Lebanon had none,” Mawad having interned during Salam’s UN tenure. A lawyer and judge, Salam joined the International Court of Justice in 2018 and was appointed its president in 2024. He has presided over South Africa’s ongoing case accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza and has ruled Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories illegal. He was also involved in UN resolutions, including Resolution 1701, which is the basis for the current ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.

Friends and former colleagues describe Salam as humble, erudite, and deeply familiar with the inner workings and flaws of the Lebanese political system. Karim Emile Bitar, a political analyst who knows Salam, described the Prime Minister-designate as a staunch believer in the rights of the Palestinian people, Lebanon’s Arab identity, Lebanese national unity, and “building a new social contract on the basis of democratic citizenship, not sectarianism.” Sectarianism refers to the country’s political system, which divides power positions by religious sect. Salam, a Sunni Muslim, is eligible for the post of Prime Minister but not President, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian.

“He’s really a man of integrity,” Hilal Khashan, a political scientist who worked with Salam at the American University of Beirut, told Al Jazeera. “He understands that the political system in Lebanon needs reform, and for him, accountability, transparency, and responsibility mean a lot.” Several interviewees suggested that Salam’s government plan would likely focus on reforming the political system, ensuring accountability for crimes in Lebanon, including the August 4, 2020, Beirut port explosion and the banking crisis, and defending the independence of Lebanon’s judiciary.

“He’s always been involved in reform, change, and progressive movements, and I hope he will succeed in translating all of this into a political platform,” political scientist Ziad Majed told Al Jazeera. Salam may come from a family that includes two former prime ministers, but he is largely seen as a technocrat. While other technocrats have been appointed to Lebanese government positions in the past, experts say that regional events, including the ceasefire between the Shia militia Hezbollah and Israel, the weakening of Iran, and the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad regime, have altered Lebanon’s political reality.

Iran and Assad’s influence in the country has diminished, while support from Western and Gulf countries appears to be rising, countries that had long tempered their relations and support for Lebanon due to Hezbollah’s strong role in the country. The ascension of Salam and Aoun to their new positions is seen as evidence of a weakening of Hezbollah, which had hoped to see figures considered more supportive of the group in these roles. Salam and Aoun may choose to capitalize on Hezbollah’s weakness following the loss of much of its leadership, including its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, in the war with Israel.

In his address on Tuesday, Salam said that his hands were “extended to everyone,” including Hezbollah, after members of the group reacted negatively to the new Prime Minister’s nomination. It remains unclear whether Hezbollah and its allies will allow Salam to make the reforms he deems necessary for Lebanon, or whether they will oppose decisions they might view as weakening Lebanon’s resolve against Israel or drawing it into a pro-Western regional camp. For now, Salam believes he has the ability to implement the national agenda he envisions.

“He’s very keen on having these conditions because he wouldn’t have taken this job if things were destined for him to fail,” Mawad said. “He knows Lebanon better than anyone.”