- Eva Kaili, vice president of the European Parliament, was detained as part of a probe into alleged Gulf state bribery.
- Belgian prosecutors think the unnamed nation tried to sway the legislature with gifts or money.
- The AFP news agency said that four further people were also detained.
Belgian prosecutors think the unnamed nation tried to sway the legislature with gifts or money.
The AFP news agency said that four further people were also detained.
Local media said that the Gulf nation in question was Qatar, but a Qatari representative denied any wrongdoing and claimed he was not aware of any probe.
One of the 14 elected vice presidents of the European Parliament, Ms. Kaili, has been suspended from the Socialists and Democrats party and expelled from the Greek center-left Pasok party.
The Socialists and Democrats Group issued a statement declaring that it had “zero tolerance” for corruption and that it would support the probe.
In 16 searches conducted on Friday in Brussels, Belgian police confiscated cash totaling roughly €600,000 ($632,000; £515,000). Police also took mobile phones and computers to look through their contents.
According to a statement from a representative of the Belgian federal prosecutor, investigators had long held suspicions that a Gulf state was influencing the political and economic decisions of the parliament.
The state was charged with picking on parliamentarian assistants.
According to the statement, “this is done by paying substantial sums of money or making substantial gifts to third parties with major political and/or strategic positions inside the European Parliament.”
Money laundering, corruption, and criminal organisation are all subjects of the larger investigation.
According to information from “well-informed sources,” the Gulf state was identified by the Belgian news publications Knack and Le Soir as Qatar. These statements have not been verified by the Bol News.
A representative for the Qatari government told AFP: “There are no specifics of an investigation that we are aware of. Any accusations of wrongdoing on the part of the State of Qatar are gravely false.”
He said, “The nation runs in complete accordance with international laws and norms.”
According to a Reuters representative, the European Parliament would not comment on an ongoing inquiry but would, if necessary, cooperate with the local authorities.
International Anti-Corruption Day, recognised by the UN and observed by the European Parliament, fell on December 9, the day of the arrests.
According to a 2016 estimate referenced in a paper released by the European Parliament to commemorate the day, corruption costs the EU economy between €179 billion and €990 billion annually, representing up to 6% of EU GDP in lost tax income and investment.
Qatar has been charged with corruption on numerous occasions, including during its application to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The nation refuted the accusations, and Fifa exonerated it of any wrongdoing.
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