Joseph Khalil Aoun ( ar, جوزاف خليل عون) is a Lebanese

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the

Lebanese Armed Forces ) , founded = 1 August 1945 , current_form = 1991 , disbanded = , branches = Lebanese Ground ForcesLebanese Air Force Lebanese Navy , headquarters = Yarze, Lebanon , flying_hours = , websit ...

since 2017.

Career

Aoun joined the Lebanese army in 1983. He trained abroad, especially in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

. He also underwent

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...

training in the

in 2008 and

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

in 2013. He has headed the army's 9th Infantry Brigade since 2015. On 8 March 2017, the Lebanese government appointed Joseph Aoun commander-in-chief of the

, replacing

Jean Kahwaji Jean Kahwaji (, ar, جان قهوجي; born 1953) is a former Lebanese military officer and Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces from 2008 to 2017. Career Kahwaji joined the Lebanese army in 1973. He trained abroad, especially in the United ...

. Following the protests in Lebanon and with the deadlock of the formation of the government, General Aoun made a speech on March 8, 2021 concerning the local and regional situation. Aoun focused on the economic crisis and its impact on the military staff and addressed the political class: "Where are we going? What are you waiting for? What do you plan to do? We have warned more than once of the danger of the situation." His speech went viral on social media.

Personal life

Joseph Aoun is married to Nehmat Nehmeh and father of two children Khalil and Nour. He is fluent in Arabic, French and English.

References

Living people 1964 births Lebanese Maronites Lebanese military personnel People from Mount Lebanon Governorate {{Lebanon-bio-stub