France orders arrest of Lebanon central bank chief

Salameh is under investigation for fraud and money laundering stemming from his role in establishing a ponzi scheme that collapsed the Lebanese banking system

Lebanese Interior Minister:

"So far, there is no arrest warrant from Interpol against Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh.

However there is an arrest warrant from a judge in France."

The Lebanese Foreign Ministry received a letter hinting at sanctions from the European Union (France) for those who are absent from the electoral sessions.

For a session to stay active, at least 65 parliamentarians should be present.

⋯ This is important because, to elect a president on the first session, 86 votes are needed. However, on the second session, only 65 votes are needed.

So as to avoid electing a president with a mere 65 votes out of 128, political parties exit the parliament.

The Islamic Resistance - Hezbullah will carryout a rare public military drill that simulates raiding an Israeli base on the 21st of May.

The event will be covered by local and international media.

🔴 Syrian President Al-Assad landed in Saudi Arabia, for the first time since 2010, in order to attend a historic Arab League summit marking the end of the boycott to the current regime.

(Video by Saudi broadcaster Al-Arabiya)

⋯ As usual, failing to understand the political atmosphere, Samir Geagea commented a month ago:

“Assad will not be present in the Arab summit in Riyadh. He will be represented by the Syrian minister of foreign affairs as an observer only. All what is happening towards Syria will be lost efforts.”

He deleted his tweet today.

After 5,000+ citizens a day have been rushing to apply for a passport, the General Security Directorate reiterated that it “has enough passports to meet demand”.

However, they appealed to citizens “who do not have an immediate need for a passport, to make way for those who do”.

80% of the issued passports have never been used.

🗓 10th anniversary of the Battle of Qusayr

Tomorrow, 19 ⁠May, marks Hezbullah's first offensive operation in what is known as the Battle of Qusayr, Syria, in 2013.

⋯ The operation started at dawn, after liberating the countryside.

It was carried to deny the terrorists a safe heaven near the Lebanese border, and halt the weapon flow from Lebanon to Syria.

The war was covered in Hezbullah's documentary “The secrets of the Second Liberation” (أسرار التحرير الثاني).

⋯ In a speech before the launch of the operation in 2013, Hezbullah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah made remarks about Hezbullah's ethics in war.

⋯ Hezbullah mourned 50-52 martyrs on the first day.

Salameh refuses to resign, is ready to buy “all” liras from the market

Central Banker Riad Salameh told Saudi-owned Al-Hadath TV that he is “ready to buy all local currency from the market, and will intervene to avoid further collapse in the exchange rate [of the lira against the dollar]”. The lira is currently trading at 94,500 LBP to one USD.

The move comes after PM Mikati and Speaker Berri met yesterday (17 ⁠May) and, as Annahar reported, sent Salameh a letter requesting his resignation before the end of his term in July. However, Salameh deemed it would be an “admission of guilt”, including for the failure to cope with the ongoing crisis.

Salameh has been indicted in France for the embezzlement of over $330 million. He was indicted in Lebanon by Prosecutor Ghada Aoun, but on May ⁠4, she was dismissed by the Disciplinary Council of Magistrates—a decision she is appealing.

In the wake of the death of a Lebanese under torture in UAE, the authorities released 5 Lebanese from prison.

Four others are still awaiting their release.

Seven others were trialed, sometime ago and their acquittal is not certain.

The Islamic Jihad Movement (PIJ)A organized a gathering today in Sidon city to commemorate the recent battle with Israel and give tribute to the fallen fighters.

⋯ Another gathering was organised in the Islamic Da'wa center in Beirut.

The gathering was attended by various Lebanese political and religious figures, including the Iranian Cultural Counselor to the embassy in Lebanon.