Oueidat to Question Ghosn over Japan Red Notice, Israel Trip

Lebanon’s State Prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat has summoned fugitive auto tycoon Carlos Ghosn to an interrogation session that will be held Thursday at his office in Beirut, the Lebanese state-run news agency said.

The National News Agency said Oueidat will question Ghosn over the content of the Interpol red notice issued by Japan’s judiciary, which accuses him of offenses committed on Japanese soil and demands his arrest.

The businessman will also be interrogated in connection with a lawsuit filed against him by Lebanese lawyers over a trip he made to Israel more than 10 years ago.

Two Lebanese lawyers had submitted a report to the State Prosecutor's Office against Ghosn last week, saying he violated Lebanese law by visiting Israel. The two neighboring countries are technically in a state of war. Prosecutor Ghassan Khoury met with the two lawyers who filed the case on Wednesday and asked them to bring additional evidence.

Ghosn visited Israel in 2008 and met officials including the prime minister and the president. At the time he announced the launch of electric cars in Israel.

Lebanese authorities have said Ghosn entered the country on a legal passport, casting doubt on the possibility they would hand him over to Japan. Lebanon last week received an Interpol-issued wanted notice -- a non-binding request to law enforcement agencies worldwide that they locate and provisionally arrest a fugitive.

Lebanon and Japan do not have an extradition treaty, and the Interpol notice does not require Lebanon to arrest him.

Ghosn, who is Lebanese and also holds French and Brazilian passports, was expected to go on trial in Tokyo in April. In statements, he has said he fled to avoid "political persecution" by a "rigged Japanese justice system." He also said that he alone organized his departure from Japan and that his wife, Carole, played no role.

On Tuesday, Tokyo prosecutors obtained an arrest warrant for Carole Ghosn on suspicion of perjury. That charge is not related to his escape. Lebanon's justice minister said Tuesday that Lebanon has not received any request related to that warrant.

Japanese justice officials acknowledge that it's unclear whether the Ghosns can be brought back to Japan to face charges.

Ghosn's former employer, Nissan Motor Co., said it was still pursuing legal action against him despite his escape, adding that Ghosn engaged in serious misconduct while leading the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi alliance. Ghosn denies all the charges.