Lebanese banker faces possible arrest at home after dining with Netanyahu

BEIRUT (AP) — A Lebanese judge issued an order Wednesday that could lead to the arrest of prominent banker Antoun Sehnaoui if he returns to Lebanon over allegations of collaboration with Israel and violating laws prohibiting contact with Israelis, state media reported.

The order came days after Sehnaoui dined in Washington with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Judge Ahmad Rami al-Hajj of the Court of Cassation issued a 30-day notice directing security forces to locate and question Sehnaoui. The banker is in the United States, but the order could result in his detention upon his return to Lebanon.

Twenty Lebanese lawyers had filed a complaint earlier Wednesday with the public prosecutor’s office in Beirut over Sehnaoui’s meeting with Netanyahu.

The meeting drew controversy amid a backdrop of war

Lebanon and Israel have been holding U.S.-backed direct talks for the first time in decades over the past three months, seeking an end to the latest fighting between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in southern Lebanon.

Lebanon’s laws prevent its citizens from having contact with Israelis — the countries remain in a state of war since Israel was established in 1948 — and violators could face prison terms.

The conflict reignited in March, two days after Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran, when Hezbollah fired at Israel and Israel responded with airstrikes and ground forces. More than 4,000 people in Lebanon have been killed, and Israel still occupies dozens of villages and towns. The countries recently reached a framework agreement.

The dinner in Washington

Axios reporter Barak Ravid posted a photo on X of Sehnaoui sitting at a restaurant table with Netanyahu and his wife, Sara. Ravid wrote that Sehnaoui and former U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus hosted a dinner Monday in memory of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham that was attended by Netanyahu and U.S. officials.

A Sehnaoui-linked website, This is Beirut, also reported details of what it called the “special dinner.”

Sehnaoui’s lawyer in Beirut did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

State-run National News Agency reported late Wednesday that al-Hajj’s decision came after the Technical Information Office determined the photo was authentic and had not been altered, manipulated digitally or generated using artificial intelligence.

The next legal steps

Four judicial officials said that after 30 days, the order issued by al-Hajj will be closed and transferred to the country’s Military Court for it to issue an arrest warrant for Sehnaoui. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

The complaint by the 20 lawyers said Sehnaoui committed “the crimes of contacting and dealing with the Israeli enemy, violating the Israel boycott law, the crime of treason and state security crimes.”

Two of the Lebanese lawyers who filed the complaint told The Associated Press that the Sehnaoui-Netanyahu meeting came as Israel’s military is still carrying out attacks on Lebanon.

One of the lawyers, Hassan Bazzi, said Sehnaoui violated the law and offended national sentiments. Bazzi said the lawyers hope the prosecutor’s office performs its duties “effectively and swiftly.”

A Lebanese foreign ministry official refused to comment when contacted by the AP.

Sehnaoui, who has been mostly based in the U.S. in recent years, has several businesses in Lebanon and abroad in sectors including banking, media and the film industry.

Like other senior bankers, Sehnaoui was harshly criticized following Lebanon’s historic economic meltdown in 2019, when most people lost access to their money. The economic crisis was described by the World Bank as among the worst in the world since the 1850s.

Sehnaoui’s meeting with the Israeli leader occurred as some in Lebanon have called for abolishing a 1955 law that bans dealing with Israel or having contacts with Israelis and punishes offenders with up to 10 years in jail.