Lebanon's president seeks evidence behind U.S. sanctions on son-in-law
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[November 07, 2020]
BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Michel
Aoun said on Saturday that Lebanon would seek evidence and documents
from the United States that led Washington to impose sanctions on his
son-in-law Gebran Bassil, a prominent Christian politician.
The United States on Friday blacklisted Bassil, leader of Lebanon's
biggest Christian political bloc, accusing him of corruption and ties to
the Iranian-backed Shi'ite Hezbollah movement that Washington deems a
terrorist group.
Aoun asked Lebanon's caretaker foreign minister, Charbel Wehbe, to
obtain evidence and documents that should be submitted to Lebanon's
judiciary "to take the necessary legal measures", the presidency
tweeted.
In September, Aoun issued similar directives after Washington
blacklisted two former government ministers over accusations of aiding
Hezbollah.
Bassil, who harbours presidential ambitions, heads the Free Patriotic
Movement (FPM) founded by Aoun and has served as minister of telecoms,
of energy and water and of foreign affairs.
"Sanctions have not scared me nor promises tempted me," Bassil said in a
Twitter post following the announcement.
The FPM has a political alliance with Hezbollah, which has become
Lebanon's most powerful political force. Bassil has defended the group
as vital to the defence of Lebanon.
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Lebanon's President Michel Aoun speaks during a news conference at
the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon October 21, 2020. Dalati
Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
Hezbollah condemned the sanctions as blatant interference aimed at
forcing U.S. "dictates" on Lebanon.
The sanctions could complicate efforts by Prime Minister-designate
Saad al-Hariri to navigate Lebanon's sectarian politics and assemble
a cabinet to tackle a financial meltdown, the country's worst crisis
since its 1975-1990 civil war and which is rooted in endemic
corruption, waste and mismanagement.
The U.S. Treasury Department accused Bassil of being at the
"forefront of corruption in Lebanon". A senior U.S. official said
Bassil's support for the armed group Hezbollah was "every bit of the
motivation" for targeting him for sanctions.
Bassil was sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights
Accountability Act, which targets human rights abuses and corruption
around the world.
(Writing by Ghaida Ghantous; editing by Frances Kerry and Clelia
Oziel)
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