On another front related to the current administration's battles, it appears that the focus of the "Free Patriotic Movement" is concentrated on the effort to oust the Central Bank Governor, Riad Salameh, and the race against time to replace him with a figure aligned with the "National Movement" before the end of the President's term. The President personally supervised the operation to raid Salameh's home in Rabieh yesterday, while the judicial arm of the current administration, Attorney General Ghada Aoun, carried out the field raid on the residence, seizing the safes inside with the help of "safe-cracking" expert Pierre Saqr, who did not hide his loyalty to Aoun when leaving the house, stating to journalists, "We are loyal to Ghada Aoun."
According to information available, Judge Aoun was able to storm the Central Bank Governor's home with the assistance of a State Security force. It turned out to be empty, and the operation of opening five safes inside resulted in the confiscation of some documents but did not yield any money. Meanwhile, Salameh's lawyers arrived at the scene to document the "illegal incursion" by Aoun, arguing that she was "without standing" to continue any investigation related to Salameh after evading notification of the state lawsuit brought by him and his brother, which should automatically disqualify her from the file.
Sources following the case expect that the upcoming period will witness more "action" from Aoun, both judicially and security-wise, in the pursuit of the Central Bank Governor, especially in light of indications that Prime Minister Mikati is unlikely to align with Aoun and Bassil’s demand to dismiss Salameh and appoint a new governor before the end of the term.
