Hezbollah lawmaker says Lebanese opponents are working to exclude the group

Senior Hezbollah lawmaker Mohammed Raad said on Monday the Iran-backed group's opponents were seeking its fragmentation and exclusion from power in Lebanon.

Speaking at the presidential palace after Hezbollah lawmakers had met with President Joseph Aoun, Raad said his group had "extended its hand" by helping to secure Aoun's election as Lebanon's president last week, only to find the "hand cut off".

Earlier on Monday Lebanese lawmakers backed Nawaf Salam, head of the International Court of Justice, to be the country's new prime minister, a move that reflected the weakened position of Hezbollah, which had wanted incumbent Najib Mikati to keep the job.