Controversial Lebanese banker and businessman Antoun Sehnaoui co-hosting a memorial dinner in Washington, D.C., in July 2026, where he hosted 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and his wife Sara.
After Netanyahu's dinner, Antoun Sehnaoui faces fresh backlash over joint 'Israeli' media production
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- Lebanese platform This Is Beirut sparked intense backlash after co-producing a video filmed in Yaffa with 'Israeli' outlet i24NEWS.
- The production drew condemnation in Lebanon for pushing soft normalization despite legal bans on 'Israeli' contact.
- Activists and lawyers called for criminal charges against owner Antoun Sehnaoui, citing Lebanese anti-boycott laws.
A joint media production between the English-language platform This Is Beirut—owned by controversial Lebanese banker and businessman Antoun Sehnaoui—and the 'Israeli' broadcaster i24NEWS has provoked widespread backlash and condemnation across Lebanon.
The collaborative video, filmed in the occupied city of Yaffa, features Lebanese and 'Israeli' presenters dancing and dining together while explicitly promoting cultural normalization.
Accompanied by the tagline "What if Israel and Lebanon could tell a different story?", the project was widely slammed in Beirut as a deliberate effort to whitewash ongoing 'Israeli' aggression and military presence in southern Lebanon through soft media tactics.
Pattern of provocations
The media partnership marks the latest in a series of actions by Sehnaoui that have drawn intense scrutiny and anger inside Lebanon.
In July 2026, Sehnaoui sparked national outrage after co-hosting a memorial dinner in Washington, D.C., where he hosted 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Following the dinner, a coalition of Lebanese lawyers filed formal legal complaints with Lebanon's top prosecutor, accusing Sehnaoui of violating the country’s 1955 Anti-Israel Boycott Law, which strictly forbids citizens from communicating with, conducting transactions with, or facilitating ties with the 'Israeli' entity.
Lebanese judicial authorities subsequently issued a search and investigation notice against him.
Sehnaoui—who also serves as chairman of Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL) and resides abroad—has long faced severe public hostility inside Lebanon, where depositors hold him partially responsible for withholding savings during the country’s catastrophic 2019 financial collapse.
Lebanese denounce isolated normalization push
The release of the video was met with swift condemnation from journalists, legal experts, and civil society groups in Beirut, who emphasized that Sehnaoui’s actions do not reflect the stance of the Lebanese state or its people.
Critics pointed out that while 'Israeli' forces maintain operations and control over parts of southern Lebanon, Sehnaoui is using stolen depositors' wealth to fund platforms that promote submissive political agendas and unlawful cultural exchanges with the enemy.
Legal scholars and activists have called on Lebanese judicial and security institutions to take immediate enforcement measures against This Is Beirut—whose headquarters are located in the Sehnaoui Building in Beirut—for breaching national law and undermining sovereign resistance to 'Israeli' occupation.
