After dining with Netanyahu, Sehnaoui faces legal scrutiny in Lebanon

One of Lebanon's most controversial oligarchs publicly hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington. Now, Lebanese authorities are under pressure to determine whether the country's anti-normalisation laws apply equally to one of its wealthiest and most politically connected businessmen.

Lebanon's public prosecutor instructed security forces on Wednesday to investigate a photograph showing banker Antoun Sehnaoui seated alongside Netanyahu and his wife Sara at a memorial dinner for the late US Senator Lindsey Graham, according to local media reports.

The inquiry will determine whether the image is authentic and whether Sehnaoui's meeting with the Israeli leader violated Lebanese laws prohibiting direct or indirect contact with Israeli citizens.

The photograph, first shared by Israeli journalist Barak Ravid after Monday night's dinner at the Four Seasons hotel in Washington, showed Sehnaoui and former US envoy Morgan Ortagus hosting Netanyahu and a guest list that included Republican Senator Ted Cruz and several senior US lawmakers.

The gathering took place as Israel continued its military campaign in Lebanon, where more than 4,300 people have been killed since 2 March, and Israeli forces continue to occupy parts of southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire agreement.

The outrage in Lebanon was immediate, cutting across the country's deeply divided political landscape.

While Beirut has engaged in US-mediated talks with Israel in recent months over security arrangements, many argued there was a fundamental distinction between official state negotiations and a private businessman publicly hosting the Israeli prime minister while Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon.

Among the first to condemn Sehnaoui was opposition MP Halima Kaakour, who accused him of crossing both a legal and moral red line.

"The image does not only reflect a violation of the Lebanese penal code regarding illicit ties with the enemy," she wrote on X. "It also reflects a profound moral and national crisis in collaborating with those who exterminate people, occupy our land, burn our forests, uproot our olive trees, and kill journalists and civilians without accountability or punishment."

Journalist Diana Moukalled urged the Lebanese state to act, arguing there was "an enormous moral and political difference" between negotiations conducted by the Lebanese government and "a corrupt banker... hosting a dinner in honour of the man primarily responsible for killing Lebanese citizens and destroying their villages".

By Wednesday, several lawyers had also filed complaints against Sehnaoui, including Lebanese lawyer Wassef El-Harakeh, who said the banker was "dealing with the enemy" and called for a transparent judicial investigation free from political or financial influence.

Prosecutors will now decide whether the case should be referred to the military court.

As chairman of Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL), Sehnaoui has long been one of Lebanon's most divisive businessmen.

He has faced investigations in Lebanon, France and the United States over allegations linked to money laundering and illicit financial transfers during Lebanon's financial collapse, allegations he has denied.

He has also drawn sustained criticism over his ownership and financing of Lebanese media outlets to shape political narratives and favourable coverage.

The Washington dinner also renewed scrutiny of remarks made by Ortagus in April, when she described Sehnaoui and his family as "generations of committed Lebanese Christian Zionists" during an event at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Referring to Lebanon's anti-normalisation laws, she added: "What Antoun is doing today is technically illegal in Lebanon."