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Algerian Ex-Defense Minister Hits Back at Rivals

Algerians shop at the produce market in the Bab el-Oued suburb of Algeria's capital Algiers, on January 26, 2021. (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)
Algerians shop at the produce market in the Bab el-Oued suburb of Algeria's capital Algiers, on January 26, 2021. (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)
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Algerian Ex-Defense Minister Hits Back at Rivals

Algerians shop at the produce market in the Bab el-Oued suburb of Algeria's capital Algiers, on January 26, 2021. (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)
Algerians shop at the produce market in the Bab el-Oued suburb of Algeria's capital Algiers, on January 26, 2021. (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)

Algeria’s former defense minister General Khaled Nezzar has launched a legal battle against his business rivals.

His only partner in the Smart Link Communication (SLC) Company, Mouloud Meghzi, has been in jail since Dec. 14 after he filed a lawsuit against Nezzar and accused him of “fraud and forgery.”

On Wednesday, a court in Algiers postponed reviewing a counter lawsuit filed by Nezzar and his five sons against Meghzi, an American citizen and relative of the former minister’s wife who has been residing in the US for more than 30 years.

The case was adjourned to February at the request of the defense team, which asked for time to read all the documents.

One of Meghzi’s lawyers said he was accused of “targeting the army’s morale” based on “WhatsApp” calls with Hichem Aboud, the wanted former intelligence officer who is residing in France.

He affirmed that Meghzi only shared information and photos belonging to Nezzar and his two sons, Lotfi and Sofiane.

He wondered why his client has been given army-linked charges while his chats and calls with Aboud only tackled his business dispute with Nezzar and his family.

Sending Meghzi to pretrial detention is “arbitrary” since he could be prosecuted out of prison, the lawyer stressed.

“Meghzi is a prominent figure known for specializing in communications techniques and Internet services in Algeria and many countries,” he added.

The US embassy in Algeria has been following up his case, and the US consul attended the court hearing on Wednesday.

In 2019, Meghzi filed the lawsuit against Nezzar, and accused him and his sons of “falsifying” the company’s contracts and raising their contributions to its capital while reducing his share to an extent that prevents him from making any decision regarding its activities.

He also filed a lawsuit against Nezzar’s family in the US since the company has implemented projects there.

Meghazi was the company’s CEO and co-founder for 20 years.

Nezzar was sentenced by the military court in absentia to 20 years in prison on charges of “undermining the authority of the army” and “conspiring” against the state, and he had sought refuge in Spain with his family.

Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaid Salah, who died in late 2019, had backed the charges amid a personal dispute that dates back to the liberation revolution, when Nezzar was still a member of the colonial army.

The charges were dropped and the case was closed a year after Salah’s death and Nezzar then returned from his self-imposed exile on Dec.11, 2020.

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Lebanon's Ex-central Bank Chief to Remain Detained Amid Probe

Lebanese army and police officers stand near what is believed to be a convoy of former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh at the Justice Palace in Beirut, Lebanon September 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
Lebanese army and police officers stand near what is believed to be a convoy of former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh at the Justice Palace in Beirut, Lebanon September 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
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Lebanon's Ex-central Bank Chief to Remain Detained Amid Probe

Lebanese army and police officers stand near what is believed to be a convoy of former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh at the Justice Palace in Beirut, Lebanon September 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
Lebanese army and police officers stand near what is believed to be a convoy of former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh at the Justice Palace in Beirut, Lebanon September 9, 2024. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

A judge ordered Lebanon's former central bank chief Riad Salameh to remain in detention amid a probe into alleged financial crimes committed during his tenure, including embezzlement of public funds, three judicial sources said.

Investigative judge Bilal Halawi took the decision after questioning Salameh for the first time since he was taken into custody last week on charges that state media said included embezzlement, forgery and illicit enrichment.

Halawi set another hearing for Thursday, one of the sources said.

Salameh's media office has said he would not comment publicly on the case, in line with the law. It said in a statement he had cooperated in the past with more than 20 criminal probes in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, and was cooperating with the investigation after his detention.

Salameh has denied previous corruption charges.

If the prosecution continues, it would mark a rare case of a serving or retired senior Lebanese official facing accountability in a system which critics say has long shielded the elite.

A group of protesters shouted "Thief!" as a convoy they believed was transporting Salameh entered the justice ministry building. Some of them struck one of the vehicles with their hands.

Salameh was long feted as a financial wizard in Lebanon but left office with his reputation shredded by corruption charges at home and abroad and the catastrophic collapse of Lebanon's financial system in 2019.

MILLIONS

Judicial sources told Reuters last week Salameh was suspected of financial misconduct related to commissions worth more than $110 million in a scheme linked to Optimum Invest, a Lebanese firm that offers income brokerage services.

Investigators have zeroed in on more than $40 million in suspicious transactions linked to that scheme that made their way from an account at the central bank to an account belonging to Salameh, judicial sources said.

Optimum Invest has said it was assisting the judicial authorities in their investigation and providing them with all requested information, and that its dealings with the central bank were conducted in full compliance with the law.

The Lebanese authorities have not published the charges.

The charges brought against Salameh last week are separate from previous charges of financial crimes linked to Forry Associates, a company controlled by his brother, Raja. The brothers - who deny any wrongdoing - were accused of using Forry to divert $330 million in public funds through commissions.

Several European countries including France and Germany have been investigating whether tens of millions of dollars of the funds allegedly embezzled from the central bank were laundered in Europe.

Last year, French and German authorities issued warrants for his arrest. The Munich prosecutor's office said in June that German authorities have cancelled their arrest warrant for technical reasons but were continuing their probe and keeping Salameh's assets frozen.