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How much trouble is Lebanon's Riad Salameh in after Interpol's red notice?

Days earlier, the French judiciary issued an international arrest warrant for Riad Salameh after he failed to show up at a hearing in Paris over his alleged involvement in an embezzlement case.

Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh gestures during an interview with AFP at his office in the capital Beirut on December 20, 2021. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images)
Lebanon's Central Bank Gov. Riad Salameh gestures during an interview with AFP at his office in the capital Beirut, Lebanon, Dec. 20, 2021. — OSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images

BEIRUT — Lebanon has received an Interpol red notice for its embattled central bank governor, Riad Salameh, the country’s Interior Ministry said on Friday, after France issued an international arrest warrant for him in a major corruption case.

Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi told Reuters that the notice was issued on Wednesday and he informed Lebanon’s judiciary the next day.

“Whatever the judiciary says, we will do,” Mawlawi added.

Salameh, who has been head of the central bank for three decades, has come under increased scrutiny after Lebanon’s financial collapse in October 2019, with many blaming him and his financial policies for the economic crisis.

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