Uncertainty surrounds succession plans for Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh

The succession file of Riad Salameh, the Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, has become a topic of discussion following the end of his term at the end of July concerning implementing the Monetary and Credit Law provisions. This means that the Deputy Governor, First Vice Governor, will assume the powers of the Governor until a new Governor is appointed, according to sources by "Annahar" newspaper.

The sources indicated that the "reservations" expressed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri regarding the assumption of the powers by the First Deputy Governor, Wassim Mansouri, which he previously announced, have been withdrawn from circulation in recent weeks.

This article was originally published in and translated from Lebanese newspaper "Annahar."

Sources in Ain El-Tineh pointed out in this context that the Parliament Speaker "had previously sent warning signals that we are not interested in this matter, but since there are no legal options or alternatives, the First Deputy Governor assumes the powers of the governor, which means that the matter has been settled."

Moreover, sources close to Hezbollah also stated that the talk about appointing a replacement for Salameh is legally impossible, given the failure of the caretaker government to make an appointment, is to implement Article 25 of the Monetary and Credit Law. This means that the Governor's powers should be transferred to his first deputy.

These sources have the impression that Mansouri has begun to deal with the matter as if it is a done deal, hence his visit to Washington. The sources exclude any legal implications of this expected procedure, as the exact legal mechanism was applied previously when the Director-General of General Security position became vacant and was assumed by a Christian officer.