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UN elects former Iraqi President to lead UN refugee agency

AL-Monitor
Dec 18, 2025
FILE PHOTO: President of Iraq, Barham Salih, speaks during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, U.S. September 23, 2021. Timothy A. Clary/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: President of Iraq, Barham Salih, speaks during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, U.S. September 23, 2021. Timothy A. Clary/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo — Timothy A. Clary

UNITED NATIONS, Dec ​18 (Reuters) - The ​United Nations ⁠General Assembly on Thursday elected Barham ​Salih, a ‍former Iraqi ​president who fled persecution under Saddam Hussein, ⁠asthe next U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Salih was elected without a vote ​by the ⁠193-member ⁠assembly after U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres nominated him ‌to succeed Italy’s ​Filippo Grandi, who has led the agency ‍since 2016.

Salih will begin a ‌five year ‌term on January 1, 2026.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols, ⁠Editing by Franklin Paul)