by retuers -- Carlos Ghosn met Lebanon's president after his escape from Japan, where he was smuggled out of house arrest by a private security company, two sources close to Ghosn said on Wednesday (Jan 1). One of the sources said Ghosn was greeted warmly by President Michel Aoun on Monday after flying into Beirut via Istanbul. In his meeting at the presidency, Ghosn thanked Aoun for the support he had given him and his wife Carole while he was in detention, the sources said. He now needs the protection and security of his government after fleeing Japan, they added. A media advisor to the president's office denied the two men had met. The sources said the Lebanese ambassador to Japan had visited him daily while he was in detention.

"PURE FICTION"

While some Lebanese media have floated a Houdini-like account of Ghosn being packed in a wooden container for musical instruments after a private concert in his home, his wife called the account pure fiction when contacted by Reuters. They said a private security firm oversaw the plan, which was three months in the making and involved shuttling Ghosn out via a private jet to Istanbul before pushing onward to Beirut, with even the pilot unaware of Ghosn's presence on board. "It was a very professional operation from start to finish" said one of the sources. The other source said Ghosn was in good health. In a written statement, Ghosn said after his arrival that he had "escaped injustice and political persecution" and would begin communicating with media next week. Sources close to him said he was unwilling to share details of his escape so as not to jeopardise those who aided him in Japan. He is staying at the home of a relative of his wife, but plans to return soon to a gated villa in the upscale Beirut neighbourhood of Achrafieh, one of the sources said.

by bbc.com -- Carlos Ghosn, the multi-millionaire former boss of Nissan, spent months preparing to stand trial on financial misconduct charges. At least, that was what the Japanese authorities were led to believe. He posted 1bn yen (£6.8m; $8.9m) in bail in April. He was monitored by a 24-hour camera installed outside his house. His use of technology was heavily restricted and he was banned from travelling abroad. Then, in a move that left Japan red-faced and his own legal team baffled, he appeared in Lebanon on New Year's Eve. "I have escaped injustice and political persecution," he declared in a statement. "We were completely caught by surprise. I am dumbfounded," his lawyer, Junichiro Hironaka, told a crowd of reporters in Tokyo shortly after learning of Mr Ghosn's flight. "I want to ask him, 'How could you do this to us?'"

Another pressing question is: how did he do it at all?

A musical escape?

One Lebanese TV channel - MTV - reported that Mr Ghosn had fled his court-approved residence in Tokyo with the assistance of a paramilitary group who were disguised amongst a band of musicians. It said the band had performed at his house and, shortly after they had finished, the 65-year-old hid himself in a large musical instrument case which was then hurried to a local airport. If this really happened, it may have been a tight squeeze even for Mr Ghosn, whose height is reported at 5ft 6in (167cm). According to the MTV story, he then flew to Turkey, before arriving in Lebanon on a private jet. The broadcaster provided no proof for this theory which, unsurprisingly, spread rapidly across social media. But donning a spy-movie disguise is not beyond Mr Ghosn. In March, in a bid to throw journalists off his scent, he left prison disguised as a construction worker. He was quickly identified, mocked in the media, and his lawyer soon apologised for the "amateur plan".

The role of Carole Ghosn

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad said on Wednesday that all public consular operations were suspended, a day after Iran-backed militias and their supporters stormed its outer perimeter, setting fires, throwing rocks and smashing surveillance cameras. “Due to militia attacks at the U.S. Embassy compound, all public consular operations are suspended until further notice. All future appointments are canceled. U.S. citizens are advised to not approach the embassy,” it said in a statement.

by foxnews.com -- The siege outside of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad came to an end Wednesday afternoon after dozens of pro-Iran militiamen and their supporters withdrew from the compound. The two-day crisis started early Tuesday, when, in an orchestrated assault, hundreds of protesters stormed the embassy compound, one of the most heavily fortified U.S. diplomatic missions in the world. The violent protests, which included smashed windows and sprayed graffiti on the embassy's walls, were said to be in protest of the deadly U.S. airstrikes that targeted an Iran-backed militia over the weekend, killing 25 fighters. In turn, those strikes had been in response to a rocket attack on an Iraqi Army base that killed a U.S. contractor and injured several American troops. The protests prompted the Pentagon to send hundreds of additional troops to the Middle East. Officials said more than 650 paratroopers are already on their way to Kuwait, and roughly 4,000 more have been told to pack their bags for a possible deployment. The Popular Mobilization Forces, an umbrella group of state-allied militias — many backed by Iran — called on its supporters to withdraw in response to an appeal by the Iraqi government, saying “your message has been received.”

by famagusta-gazette.com --The Lebanese have been desperately trying to invest their bank deposits in real estate and gold to escape a possible haircut in the near future. Lebanon has witnessed in the past few months a shortage in U.S. dollar, caused by an economic slowdown and the drop in cash injections from the Lebanese abroad. Hence, banks have imposed restrictions on the withdrawals of depositors and the conversion of the Lebanese pound to the U.S. dollar, creating great panic among people about the future of their savings. “Demand for real estate has increased tremendously since the start of the dollar crisis,” Mazen Moharam, CEO of Moharam and Itani Developers, told Xinhua. But the luck in acquiring an apartment or any other real estate property depends, to a great extent, on developers’ need for money, Moharam said. “If developers are indebted to banks, they may accept checks … and deposit these checks in their accounts to settle their loans to banks,” he explained. However, developers not in need of money are not selling for fear of a possible haircut of their deposits, said Raja Makarem, chairman and founder of Ramco Real Estate Advisors. “In this case, developers prefer to keep their properties instead of depositing higher amounts of money in banks,” he added. Meanwhile, people in Lebanon have also been trying to invest in gold but jewellers say they refuse payments by credit card or check. “We have a great demand for gold but we cannot sell gold in return for virtual money such as checks or credit cards,” Yasser Younes, owner of a jewellery shop in Verdun, told Xinhua. “We only sell for cash,” he said. Two other jewellers, respectively in Hamra and ABC mall, also confirmed the cash-only payments in gold transactions, adding credit cards and check payments are only accepted for regular fashion jewellery items such as pendants.

by lebaneseexaminer.com —Tiffany Trump and her Lebanese boyfriend Michael Boulos celebrated New Year’s Eve at President Donald Trump’s New Year’s Eve party …