European Parliament vice-president detained on Qatari bribery charges

Greek MP Eva Kaili, vice-president of the European Parliament, was arrested on charges of accepting bribes from Qatar.

The arrest of 5 people, including Kaili, who was accused of lobbying for World Cup host Qatar and influencing parliamentary decisions, created a shock effect in Brussels. Kaili, 44, a Greek Socialist MP, served as the vice-president of the European Parliament responsible for relations with the Middle East.

As 16 houses were searched during the operations carried out yesterday, it was reported that Kaili’s friend Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, was among the names arrested. It was found that Visentini and the other detainees were Italian.

Belgian police had previously announced that 600,000 euros in cash were found during searches in Brussels. Authorities had reported that the incident was related to a Gulf country trying to influence political and economic decisions in Europe.

He pointed out that the phones and computers seized during the operations will also be reviewed.

PRAISE THE RIGHTS OF WORKERS IN QATAR

The Greek party PASOK suspended Eva Kaili’s membership due to the incident. Kaili, who has served as a member of the European Parliament for 8 years, was previously a well-known announcer on Greek television. Kaili met Qatari Labor Minister Ali bin Semih al-Mahri last month and drew attention by describing Qatar as “the leading country for labor rights.”

Reports were reported in the press about Qatar giving bribes and expensive gifts to important figures to influence international political decisions. Qatar is under fire for the deaths of thousands of workers during World Cup construction and bans on the LGBT movement.