Political maneuvering: Ministers of the 'system' collaborate to protect Salameh from consequences

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, in cooperation with the Shiite Duo and other parties supporting or involved with the Governor of Banque du Liban, Riad Salameh, continue to play on time and circumvent the necessary measures against Salameh after a number of international arrest warrants were issued against him.  

This article was originally published in and translated from Lebanese newspaper Nidaa al-Watan.   

Additionally, the "new chapter" was issued by the Council of Ministers, assigning Minister of Finance Youssef El Khalil to submit "a report showing the repercussions of foreign prosecutions on the performance of Salameh and its reflection on the tasks of the Central Bank, and assigning Minister of Justice Henry Khoury to provide the appropriate legal opinion."  

The two ministers have declared positions: the Minister of Finance said two days ago that he is against Salameh's dismissal and that Banque du Liban needs him at this stage.  

As for the Minister of Justice, he announced that he was with Salameh's dismissal or pushing him to resign, and he repeated that several times. 

Ministerial sources told Nidaa al-Watan that Mikati, in cooperation with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, are trying to "prevent the dismissal and want Salameh to remain until the end of his term at the end of next July." 

Adding that the discussion of the issue was nothing but a matter of "throwing dust in the eyes" and "wasting" the issue by giving an impression that the government is interested in the case and its repercussions and that it is doing its job. 

In addition, other sources confirmed that there is an attempt to remove lawyer Emmanuel Daoud, who volunteered in agreement with the French judiciary to defend the Lebanese state and preserve its rights in the seizures of the assets, accounts, and real estate of Salameh and others after the issuance of final rulings.  

According to Nidaa al-Watan, ministers raised their objection to Daoud on the pretext that he is Jewish, ignoring that he is one of the most famous lawyers in Paris and one of the most prominent specialists in this type of case, and he has many successes in it across borders.
  
Daoud is also a volunteer without incurring any fees on the Lebanese state. 

The sources denounced this attempt because it comes in "the context of the obstacles that are placed in front of any progress in the investigations with Salameh inside and outside of a system that wants to protect him at any cost, and wants, from behind that, to protect itself as well."  

The sources confirmed that "this type of allegation against the famous lawyer Daoud will increase the conviction of French and other European judges of suspicious complicity that deserves the prosecution of those involved in it, in addition to the possibility of accusing those who attack Daoud just because he is a Jew with anti-Semitism, and this is a crime in the European Union."  

It is noteworthy that the ministers of the Shiite Duo, during the days of Hassan Diab's government, had previously objected to the appointment of the international "Kroll" company for criminal auditing of the accounts of Banque du Liban, claiming that it had a representative office in Israel.  

Then another company was appointed, which was described as "collaborating" to issue a report that may not carry much. 

In addition, information was reported that a German public prosecutor had ordered the freezing of real estate worth 25.6 million euros owned by Riad Salameh in Munich.  

A number of European countries had previously frozen 120 million euros at an earlier stage.  

Legal sources told Nidaa al-Watan, "The seizures will increase with the expansion of the investigations and the emergence of new leads in them, especially since there are those who have begun to cooperate with the European judiciary (both Lebanese and non-Lebanese) and provide it with valuable information about Salameh's properties and the group involved with him."