Veteran politician Herzog elected Israel president

Jerusalem: Isaac Herzog, a veteran politician and the scion of a prominent Israeli family, has been elected president, a largely ceremonial role.

An anonymous vote was held on Tuesday among the 120 members of the Knesset, or parliament.

Herzog, 60, is a former head of Israel's Labor Party and opposition leader who unsuccessfully ran against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the 2013 parliamentary elections.

He will succeed Reuven Rivlin, who is set to leave office next month. Herzog is scion of a prominent Zionist family. His father, Chaim Herzog, was Israel's ambassador to the United Nations before being elected president. His uncle, Abba Eban, was Israel's first foreign minister and ambassador to the United Nations and United States.