Lebanon's pro-Western bloc will retain its control of the country's government despite a strong challenge from a Hezbollah-dominated alliance, according to official election results released Monday, CNN reported.
The pro-West March 14 coalition won 71 seats in Lebanon's parliament, while the Hezbollah-dominated March 8 alliance won the remaining 57 seats, Lebanese Interior Minister Ziad Baroud announced.
Hezbollah's allies include Syria and Iran.
Saad Hariri, the leader of the Sunni-dominated March 14 bloc, gave a victory speech Monday after the polls closed but hours before the official results were released.
In a speech on the Hezbollah-linked Manar Television, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah congratulated the winners.
"We accept that our opponents received the majority of the seats in the parliament," he said, adding that his party will abide by the results.
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