February 23 – A Belgian court has dismissed an attempt to stop the Qatargate corruption investigation into state influence in European politics.
Qatargate, the scandal that rocked the European Parliament three years ago, has been winding its way through the Belgian courts. After judge Michel Claise stood down over conflict of interest allegations, the high-profile case seemed destined to die a slow death.
However, the appeals court has ruled that the prosecutors didn’t mishandle the case, allowing the probe to continue.
The court found that the parliamentary immunities of MEPs under investigation, including former Parliament Vice President Eva Kaili, had not been breached.
In a statement, the prosecutor’s office said: “The Court reiterated that parliamentary immunity is not a personal privilege of the Member, but a guarantee of the independence of the Parliament as a whole and of its Members. The Court further recalled that the immunity of a Member of the European Parliament does not prevent judicial investigative measures from being carried out in respect of that Member.”
The court dismissed allegations over the impartiality of the judge. The prosecutor’s statement read: “It held that the elements relied upon (alleged connections, media context, procedural decisions) did not reveal any objective or subjective bias.”
If the court of appeal had found serious procedural flaws, the prosecution could have been thrown out. Qatargate was launched three years ago – during the 2022 World Cup – when Belgian police detained and arrested Kaili after finding more than €1.5 million in cash at her home.
She denied any wrongdoing, as did Qatar, but Qatargate raised serious questions about the influence of a foreign power, Qatar, at the heart of European decision-making and the extent to which the Gulf nation had tried to polish its image ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
As a vice president in the European Parliament, Kaili praised Qatar as “a frontrunner in labour rights.”
Multiple members of the European Parliament and their aides have been accused of accepting money and gifts in return for advancing the interests of foreign governments, including Qatar and Morocco. All of those implicated reject the accusations.
In 2023, however, Pier Antonio Panzeri, a former Italian MEP, entered into a plea deal with Belgian prosecutors in exchange for a lighter sentence.
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