Former Iraq President Barham Salih elected as UN refugee agency head

Salih was elected as the next U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees without a vote by the 193-member assembly, following the nomination by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

President of Iraq, Barham Salih, speaks during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on 23 September 2021. | File Photo | Timothy A. Clary | Pool via Reuters

United Nations: The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday elected Barham Salih, a former Iraqi president who fled persecution under Saddam Hussein, as the 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)

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