During his military service, he progressed from an infantry platoon leader to a Battalion Commander, and then assumed the position of a trainer in the Military Academy and in the non-commissioned officer School. From 25 December 1990 until 21 August 1991 he was appointed as the Chief of the Intelligence Branch of Mount Lebanon. The Lebanese Army Intelligence of Mount Lebanon was after the detention of hundreds of anti-Syrian demonstrators with some cases of reported torture. On 25 August 1991 he was reassigned to the post of the Army Staff Secretary-General until 10 June 1993. He was Commander of the 11th Infantry Brigade from 6 June 1993 to 15 January 1996, a period that witnessed violent confrontations with the Israeli forces in the West Beqaa Valley and South Lebanon regions. On 15 January 1996 he was appointed as Commander of the 6th Infantry Brigade and remained in this position until 21 December 1998, when he was appointed as the Commander of the Armed Forces. He was appointed commander-in-chief of the Lebanese army, although there were dozens of officers higher in rank and seniority. His appointment was reported to be a result of his family relations with a Syrian high-level official.