Lebanon Demands Secrecy of Swiss Judicial Investigation

Lebanon Demands Secrecy of Swiss Judicial Investigation

Salameh denied he had made any transfers from the accounts of the Banque du Liban or from its budgets, and expressed his readiness to go to Switzerland to present his testimony. (Shutterstock) Lebanon's foreign minister, Charbel Wehbe, demanded the absolute secrecy of the investigation into "suspicions of money laundering and embezzlement by the Banque du Liban," following a Swiss request for assistance from the Lebanese judiciary. Wehbe met with the Swiss ambassador to Beirut, Monika Schmutz Kirgoz, on Monday, who refused to comment on the matter, saying that the probe was a matter that the Swiss minister of justice and the attorney general were dealing with, adding that the Swiss attorney general was the one who requested judicial assistance. Wehbe said: "Despite the importance of this matter to the Lebanese public, absolute secrecy is required in response to what is being circulated through Lebanese media regarding this case." Wehbe called on the media to "report the news as it is, without interpretations, additions, or switching words around." He also said: "I hope that the Lebanese judiciary will have absolute freedom to make a statement and take the appropriate decision in this regard." The Lebanese judiciary informed the governor of the