French authorities on Monday, June 5, called for the lifting of the diplomatic immunity of Lebanon’s ambassador to Paris, Rami Adwan. The ambassador is under investigation for rape and use of force. “The Foreign Ministry had already spoken of lifting the diplomat’s immunity on Friday, June 2, saying it was “necessary to facilitate the work of French justice,” Le Figaro reported.
An investigation was launched against Rami Adwan after complaints from two former female embassy staff with whom he had a relationship. The first alleged victim, who works as an editor, had first reported to the police in 2020 that the diplomat had been violent against her. However, the 31-year-old did not want to press charges so as not to damage the reputation of the ambassador, who is married with children. She confirmed that she was in a “love relationship” with the diplomat, who “abused her psychologically and physically and humiliated her on a daily basis”.
In June 2022, the young woman filed a complaint for a rape committed in Rami Adwan’s private flat in May 2020. In her complaint, obtained by Le Figaro, she stated that she had refused sexual intercourse and that she had screamed and cried.
The second 28-year-old woman filed a complaint in February this year. She states that she quickly established a relationship with Rami Adwan after he arrived as an employee at the embassy. In the course of this relationship, the alleged victim, according to her, suffered physical violence, mostly after refusing sexual intercourse. According to her, Rami Adwan allegedly tried to run her over with his car after an argument at the Peace Forum in Caen in September last year. The diplomat also allegedly tried to suffocate her in her home by pushing her face onto her bed in December.
On Saturday June 3, the Lebanese government announced it would send a team of investigators to Paris to “collect statements from embassy staff” and question Rami Adwan. His lawyer, Karim Beylouni, stated that his client denied the allegations and had only had “love affairs with quarrels and separations” with the two women.