Lebanon's President Michel Aoun Saturday congratulated Syria's President Bashar Assad on winning a fourth term in office, saying he looked forward to developing bilateral ties between the two countries.

"I take this opportunity to stress the depth of the historic ties between our two countries and I look forward to the development of our bilateral ties in various fields that serve the higher interests of both our peoples," a statement from Aoun's office said, quoting a message to Assad.

Hezbollah, an Assad ally, had also congratulated the Syrian president in a statement Friday: "We hope that upcoming years will be a great opportunity for Syria to return to playing its natural and leading role globally and regionally."

Assad won the election Thursday with a majority of 95.1 percent. Syria has been in a brutal 10-year-old civil war that was triggered by an uprising against the Assad regime.

Most Western nations have said the election was a sham and didn't reflect the true will of the Syrian people.