BRUSSELS — The Belgian prosecutor’s office has put in a request to the European Parliament to investigate the roles of two lawmakers in the major corruption probe known as Qatargate, it said Tuesday in a statement.
“The Federal Prosecutor’s Office confirms that it has requested the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of two members of the European Parliament. An announcement concerning the filing of the request will be made on March 10th by the President Roberta Metsola,” a spokesperson said.
When asked about the identities of the two members of the European Parliament, the Belgian prosecutor’s office would not comment.
Qatargate first came to light at the end of 2022, when former Socialist MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, Parliamentary Assistant Francesco Giorgi and other key figures such as Vice President of the Parliament Eva Kailli were arrested in a series of dramatic raids involving bags of cash and lurid tales of foreign interference at the heart of EU democracy.
The Belgian authorities will have to wait for the Parliament to go through a lengthy procedure before being able to fully investigate the two new MEPs. The lifting of their immunity will lead Parliament President Metsola to announce the judiciary request at the earliest on Monday during a plenary session.
The European Parliament’s legal affairs committee will then give the two MEPs a chance to say their piece and rubber-stamp the measure before handing it over to the entire plenary of lawmakers for a final vote.
If approved by all MEPs later this month, Belgian authorities will be able to pursue charges against the Socialist lawmakers.
When contacted, a spokesperson for Metsola declined to comment on the ongoing procedure. A spokesperson from the Socialists & Democrats group did not respond to a request for comment.
Max Griera contributed to this report.
The post Qatargate: Belgian prosecutor asks to lift the immunity of two new MEPs appeared first on Politico.
