A view of the "Salle des Pas Perdus" (Hall of Lost Steps) at the Beirut Palais de Justice. (Credit: Claude Assaf/L'Orient-Le Jour)
Acting Beirut first investigative judge Bilal Halawi issued an arrest warrant against Karim Salam, brother and associate of former Economy and Trade Minister Amin Salam (2021–2025), after questioning him on Tuesday.The defendant had been referred to Judge Halawi last Thursday by Financial Prosecutor Ali Ibrahim, who brought charges against him and ordered his arrest for “extortion, misuse of public funds and money laundering,” in a case he has been examining since 2023.The case is based on a complaint by insurance company owners, who accuse Salam of extorting bribes from them to regularize the financial situation of their companies, after they were declared insolvent after losing part of their capital because of the depreciation of the national currency following the 2019 financial crisis. These insurers accuse Salam of having asked them...
Acting Beirut first investigative judge Bilal Halawi issued an arrest warrant against Karim Salam, brother and associate of former Economy and Trade Minister Amin Salam (2021–2025), after questioning him on Tuesday.The defendant had been referred to Judge Halawi last Thursday by Financial Prosecutor Ali Ibrahim, who brought charges against him and ordered his arrest for “extortion, misuse of public funds and money laundering,” in a case he has been examining since 2023.The case is based on a complaint by insurance company owners, who accuse Salam of extorting bribes from them to regularize the financial situation of their companies, after they were declared insolvent after losing part of their capital because of the depreciation of the national currency following the 2019 financial crisis. These insurers accuse Salam of having...