The UN investigation into the assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri has impacted the financial scene. The work of German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis and his team to uncover suspects behind the murder created a stir when a request for banking secrecy laws to be lifted from the accounts of certain individuals key to the enquiry was leaked to the press and found to contain the name of Elias Murr who was not considered a suspect. Banking industry members said they were dismayed at the negative publicity created by the “propaganda” surrounding the leak and the erroneous inclusion of Murr’s name. “Every day banks get letters about suspicious transactions but they deal with them with discretion. This brouhaha about the investigation into those bank accounts is bad,” said one manager. Other experts have pointed out that, in any case, a request for information on accounts and financial transactions of any suspect
