US, UK, Canada Sanction Lebanon's Former Central Bank Governor

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The Facts

  • On Thursday, the US, the UK, and Canada revealed that they would be placing sanctions on Riad Salameh, the former governor of Lebanon's central bank, following accusations of corruption.

  • The US Treasury Department stated that Salameh had "abused his position of power... to enrich himself and his associates." Furthermore, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joy claimed that the sanctions were a message that "significant corruption" would not be "tolerated."

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The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

Riad Salameh is one of Lebanon’s most sinister actors and holds a massive amount of responsibility for Lebanon’s financial crisis. Touted as a “financial wizard” and steward of Lebanon’s economy, Salameh betrayed his duty by orchestrating a Ponzi scheme to enrich himself and his inner circle. The evidence against Salameh is overwhelming — there are too many shady deals and too much money missing for it to be a coincidence. Salameh is a corrupt criminal, and he must be held accountable.

The New Arab

Establishment-critical narrative

Political adversaries in Lebanon and the West are targeting Riad Salameh, trying to sow discord in Lebanon’s financial markets and create rampant speculation that will yield easy profits. Salameh has complied with judiciaries in Lebanon and abroad and continues to maintain his innocence, and the French warrant against him violates the provisions of a previous Lebanese-French agreement.

This is Beirut

Establishment split

CRITICAL

PRO