Lebanon Issues Wanted Notice for Banker After Dinner With Netanyahu

Lebanese authorities have launched legal proceedings against Antoun Sehnaoui, chairman of Societe Generale de Banque au Liban, for violating laws that prohibit contact with Israeli citizens. The action follows a dinner Sehnaoui co-hosted with former U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus in Washington on July 27 to honor the late Senator Lindsey Graham. The dinner was attended by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Judge and public prosecutor Ahmad Rami al-Hajj issued a 30-day wanted notice for Sehnaoui on charges of dealing with the Israeli enemy and violating the country's boycott law. This notice authorizes security forces to locate and question Sehnaoui, potentially leading to his arrest upon return to Lebanon. Simultaneously, a group of lawyers filed a criminal complaint at the Court of Cassation in Beirut, alleging treason and state security violations under a 1955 law. Such offenses can carry prison sentences of up to 10 years.

The legal pursuit occurs amid ongoing Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon and broader regional tensions. While the current charges focus on the Washington meeting, Sehnaoui also faces separate allegations of money laundering related to currency trading during Lebanon's financial crisis, though his bank has denied any wrongdoing.