German Prosecutors Confirm Probe into Former Lebanon Central Bank Chief

Riad Salameh served as Lebanon's central bank chief from 1993 to 2023. (Reuters)
Riad Salameh served as Lebanon's central bank chief from 1993 to 2023. (Reuters)
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German Prosecutors Confirm Probe into Former Lebanon Central Bank Chief

Riad Salameh served as Lebanon's central bank chief from 1993 to 2023. (Reuters)
Riad Salameh served as Lebanon's central bank chief from 1993 to 2023. (Reuters)

German prosecutors have for the first time confirmed money laundering investigations against the former Lebanese central bank chief, the Munich public prosecutor's office said on Tuesday.

The prosecutors said they were investigating Riad Salameh, Lebanon's central bank chief, from 1993 to 2023, together with his brother Raja and other suspects on charges including forgery, money laundering and embezzlement.

The Salameh brothers deny the charges.

Last year, a source told Reuters Germany had issued an arrest warrant for Salameh on corruption charges.

Salameh, 72, is being investigated in Lebanon and at least five European countries for allegedly taking hundreds of millions of dollars from Lebanon's central bank, to the detriment of the Lebanese state, and laundering the funds abroad.

Munich's public prosecutor's office said part of the sum was routed to Europe via a letterbox company in the British Virgin Islands and invested in real estate, including in Germany.

In an operation with partner authorities from France and Luxembourg, three commercial properties in Munich and Hamburg with a total value of around 28 million euros were confiscated, the prosecutor's office said.

In addition, shares in a Duesseldorf-based property company worth around 7 million euros were secured.

Germany is considered to be one of the main countries worldwide in which illegally earned funds are fed into the economy through money laundering.



Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
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Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the importance of improving the humanitarian situation in Gaza in a meeting with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer in Washington on Monday, the State Department said.

Dermer updated Blinken on operational changes and policy decisions taken by Israel in response to a US letter sent in October, the department said in a statement on Tuesday.

Blinken "emphasized the importance of ensuring those changes lead to an actual improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, including through the delivery of additional assistance to civilians throughout Gaza," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in the statement.