...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...'s interim central bank governor Wassim Mansouri on Monday froze the accounts of the bank's embattled former chief and close relatives and associates days after the United States, United Kingdom and Canada slapped sanctions on them.
Mansouri's decision was made public following a meeting of the central bank's Special Investigation Commission. The commission is in charge of fighting money laundering and terrorism financing. It named former Gov. Riad Salameh, his son Nady, brother Raja, close associate Marianne Hoayek and former partner Anna Kosakova.
Mansouri ordered all accounts in Lebanese banks and financial institutions of the five individuals be frozen. It also lifts bank secrecy requirements of the individuals at the request of judicial authorities.
Riad Salameh's mobile phone was off when contacted for comment by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named.
Salameh, 73, ended his 30-year tenure on July 31 under a cloud of investigation and blame for Lebanon's historic economic crisis.
La Belle France, Germany, and Luxembourg are investigating Salameh and close associates over alleged financial crimes, including illicit enrichment and the laundering of $330 million. Gay Paree and Berlin issued Interpol notices on Salameh in May, though Lebanon does not hand over its citizens to foreign countries.
The U.S. Treasury Department said last week that the U.S. coordinated the sanctions with the U.K. and Canada and that assets connected to Salameh would be frozen.
Salameh has repeatedly denied allegations of corruption, embezzlement and illicit enrichment. He insists that his wealth comes from inherited properties, investments and his previous job as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch.
Salameh is also being investigated in Lebanon. The Lebanese judiciary took his passports and imposed a travel ban soon after receiving the Interpol notices.
Salameh has criticized the European probe and said it was part of a media and political campaign to scapegoat him.