The selection of Mr. Salam was seen as a blow to Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group and political party that has acted as the real power in Lebanon for decades.

The top judge at the International Court of Justice Nawaf Salam has been designated Lebanon’s next prime minister in a surprising turnaround for the crisis-ridden country.

Nawaf Salam, the president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, has been named as Lebanon's new prime minister. Two thirds of the 128 members of parliament nominated the 71-year-old judge for the post - reserved for a Sunni Muslim under a sectarian power sharing system - during consultations with newly elected President Joseph Aoun.