Lebanese banker Antoun Sehnaoui was lambasted on social media on Wednesday after he was named as a donor to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum at its Days of Remembrance ceremony in Washington on Tuesday.
Sehnaoui is chairman of the board of the SGBL Group, which controls one of Lebanon’s largest banks, Société Générale de Banque au Liban. He visited the memorial museum together with US diplomat Morgan Ortagus, who is Jewish and with whom he has a relationship.
US President Donald Trump appointed Ortagus as deputy special presidential envoy to the Middle East in January 2025. She has since left the role.
“Today is Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day,” Sehnaoui posted on X/Twitter. “Morgan and I had the honor of attending the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Days of Remembrance ceremony in Washington, DC, where our inscription on the Donors Wall was unveiled. This year, and every year, we are reminded that it is our responsibility to ensure that future generations never forget. We are deeply grateful to support this institution and its vital work.”
Sehnaoui is the first Lebanese name to be inscribed on the donor’s wall
In an address to the attendees, Ortagus said Sehnaoui was a Lebanese Christian Zionist, adding that peace initiatives he had sponsored were considered illegal in Lebanon.
“What makes it a little bit different – I’m going to brag about him because I love him – what Antoun is doing today is technically illegal in Lebanon,” she said. “I’m so proud of him today for doing something illegal in Lebanon.”
Sehnaoui is the first Lebanese to be inscribed on the museum’s donor wall.
Following the event’s publication on social media, Arab social-media accounts condemned Sehnaoui for both his presence at the event and for his romantic relationship with a Jewess.
One post said Sehnaoui belonged “behind bars,” while another accused him of converting to Judaism and “betraying his country.”
“Donate to our kllers so they can do something worst than holocaust to us [sic],” another post said.
“You are a disgusting despicable person with no sense of respect to your own people,” another post said. “Trust me no one of them will care if anything happens to you goy.”
Sehnaoui’s attendance was widely reported by Lebanese media outlets, including al-mashhad and janoubia news sites, with most comments citing his relationship with Ortagus.