Beirut - (AFP) - European investigators, Tuesday, in Beirut, heard two new witnesses, one of whom is the chairman of a bank, for eight hours in the context of investigations related to the governor of the Central Bank, Riad Salameh, according to a Lebanese judicial source told Agence France-Presse.

On Monday, investigators from France, Germany and Luxembourg began their mission in Beirut by listening to witnesses in investigations related to money laundering and embezzlement cases in Lebanon linked to Salameh.

The judicial source, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said that the European investigators listened for more than eight hours to each of the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Resources Bank, former Minister Marwan Khair El-Din, and the former deputy governor of the Central Bank, Ahmed Jishi.

Khair El-Din, who assumed the position of Minister of State in 2011, had a good relationship with Riad Salameh.
Jishi held the position of Deputy Governor of the Banque du Liban between 2003 and 2008.

"As far as I know, he has not received any summons," Pierre-Olivier Sur, Salameh's French lawyer, told AFP.

Two Lebanese judges, who attended both hearings, asked the two witnesses questions.

On Monday, the investigators heard from Saad Al-Andari, who is also Salameh's former deputy.

The judicial source, who is familiar with the content of the sessions, stated that the questions directed to Salameh’s deputies focus on decisions taken by the Central Council of the Banque du Liban, while “the questions directed to managers and owners of banks focus on accounts in them belonging to Raja Salameh, the brother of the Governor of the Banque du Liban, and transfers to the accounts of the two brothers in the outside".

He pointed out that "the delegations focused their questions on the role of Fore Associates," which is registered in the Virgin Islands and has an office in Beirut, and its economic beneficiary is Raja Salameh.

The European investigations focus on the relationship between the Banque du Liban and the “Fawry” company, which is believed to have played the role of intermediary to purchase treasury bonds and Eurobonds from the Central Bank by receiving a subscription commission, which was transferred to Raja Salameh’s accounts abroad.

On March 28, 2022, the European Judicial Cooperation Unit "Eurojust" announced that France, Germany and Luxembourg had frozen 120 million euros of Lebanese assets following an investigation targeting Salameh and four of his close associates, including his brother, on charges of money laundering and "embezzlement of public funds in Lebanon worth more than From 330 million dollars and 5 million euros, respectively, between 2002 and 2021.

Since July 2021, the French financial judiciary has been investigating Salama's fortune, and in early December, a Ukrainian woman close to him was charged with charges, including money laundering and tax fraud.

It is scheduled that the former deputy governor of the Central Bank, Raed Sharaf El-Din, and the former director of parts, Noman Ndour, will appear before the European investigators on Wednesday.

According to intersecting judicial sources, Salama's name is not included in the list of people who will be heard at this stage.

Salama has always denied the accusations against him, considering that his prosecution comes in the context of an operation to "tarnish" his image.

Salama faces several issues in Lebanon, including a local investigation regarding his wealth based on a Swiss investigation, but it did not reach any results.

Despite the complaints, summons, investigations, and travel ban issued against him in Lebanon, Salameh remains in the position he has held since 1993, making him one of the longest-serving central bank governors in the world. His term is supposed to end in May 2023.