Lebanon Judge Sets March 15 Hearing for Central Bank Chief in Graft Probe

Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh poses during a studio photo session in the capital Beirut, on December 20, 2021. (AFP)
Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh poses during a studio photo session in the capital Beirut, on December 20, 2021. (AFP)
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Lebanon Judge Sets March 15 Hearing for Central Bank Chief in Graft Probe

Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh poses during a studio photo session in the capital Beirut, on December 20, 2021. (AFP)
Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh poses during a studio photo session in the capital Beirut, on December 20, 2021. (AFP)

A Lebanese investigative judge has scheduled a March 15 hearing for Lebanese Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh as part of a cross-border corruption probe into Salameh and close associates, a judicial source said.

Judge Charbel Abu Samra took over the case late last month after another judge charged Salameh with embezzlement, illicit enrichment and money laundering. Charges were also filed against his brother, Raja, and an assistant, Marianne Howayek.

They all deny the charges against them.

Abu Samra on Monday met representatives of three European countries also probing Salameh, with which Lebanon has pledged to cooperate - Germany, France and Luxembourg.

He informed them that he had not yet fully studied the contents of the file, comprising four boxes, and that it would take time to do so, the judicial source said.

Abu Samra appointed three financial experts to study the file with him, the source added.

The charges against Salameh are the product of an 18-month probe into whether Salameh and his brother, Raja, embezzled more than $300 million from the Central Bank between 2002 and 2015.

Judicial authorities in at least five European countries are investigating the Salameh brothers over the same allegations.

Salameh, central bank governor since 1993, still enjoys backing from powerful Lebanese leaders. Many judges largely owe their appointments to politicians.

He was charged last year over illicit enrichment in a case related to the purchase and rental of Paris apartments, including some to Lebanon's Central Bank.



Netanyahu: Cabinet Won't Meet Over Ceasefire Until Hamas Drops New Demands

People check the rubble of buildings hit in Israeli strikes the previous night in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on January 16, 2025, following a truce announcement amid the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
People check the rubble of buildings hit in Israeli strikes the previous night in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on January 16, 2025, following a truce announcement amid the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
TT

Netanyahu: Cabinet Won't Meet Over Ceasefire Until Hamas Drops New Demands

People check the rubble of buildings hit in Israeli strikes the previous night in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on January 16, 2025, following a truce announcement amid the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
People check the rubble of buildings hit in Israeli strikes the previous night in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on January 16, 2025, following a truce announcement amid the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday his Cabinet won’t meet to approve the agreement for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of dozens of hostages until Hamas backs down from what it called a “last minute crisis.”
Netanyahu’s office accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement in an attempt “to extort last minute concessions.” It did not elaborate.
The Israeli Cabinet was set to ratify the deal Thursday.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 48 people over the past day. In previous conflicts, both sides have stepped up military operations in the final hours before ceasefires go into effect as a way to project strength.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said the 48 bodies of people killed since midday Wednesday were brought to several hospitals.