Lebanon’s Samaha named global terrorist
Pakistan News, Dec 17 2012
The US on Monday named former Lebanese information minister Michel Samaha a “specially designated global terrorist” for allegedly aiding the Assad regime to launch attacks in Lebanon. Samaha was arrested on Aug 9 by Lebanese authorities and accused of plotting to assassinate Lebanese leaders and of transporting explosives into Lebanon for such attacks, the US Treasury said in a statement. Treasury Under-Sec for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen said:
The US will continue to expose any attempts by the Assad regime to meddle in the affairs of its neighbors and further destabilize the region. We will continue to work with our international partners to ensure that the sovereignty of Lebanon is respected and upheld.
Samaha, who has both Lebanese and Canadian nationality, was minister of information and tourism in the 1990s. He was officially listed as a “global terrorist” by the US State Dept, and the Treasury froze any assets he holds under US jurisdiction and forbids USAians from doing business with him. The Treasury said Samaha “reportedly” received the explosives he is accused of transporting from Ali Mamluk, the head of the Syrian National Security Bureau. The Treasury said:
Information available to the US government indicates that in Jul 2012 Mamluk was involved in a plot with Samaha to conduct bombing attacks against Lebanese political and religious figures in northern Lebanon, and Mamluk provided money and explosives to Samaha for that purpose.
Niqnaq 