Lebanon's parliament has begun procedings to elect a new president and end more than two years of  political vacuum.

81-year-old former general Michel Aoun is expected to be chosen. He's head of the Free Patriotic Movement and is allied with the Iran-backed Hezbollah party whose forces are fighting with government troops against jihadist insurgents.

His anticipated election to the presidency came after a surprise endorsement by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri who leads a bloc that rivals Hezbollah.