Lebanon’s parliament extended its own mandate for two years on Monday, a statement from the office of Speaker Nabih Berri said, pushing back elections that were meant to take place in May of this year.
Speaker Berri’s office said 76 lawmakers of the 128-seat body had voted in favor of the extension.
The vote came a week after Israeli launched a renewed wide-scale aggression on Lebanon on March 2, bombing dozens of cities and towns across the country.
The Israeli aggression has killed more than 400 people and injured at least 1,130 others.
Israeli Aggression on Lebanon Enters Second Week with Heavy Strikes on Beirut and South
— ManarWeb (@WebManar) March 9, 2026
Israeli strikes were reported in several areas, leaving civilian casualties and heavy destruction. pic.twitter.com/z74PcGpvMG
Lebanon last held parliamentary elections in 2022 and there had been pressures on the Lebanese State to extend the current body’s mandate.
Lawmakers have taken similar measures in the past. The parliament elected in 2009 voted to extend its own mandate until 2017, citing security concerns linked to the war that was then raging in neighboring Syria.