Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2025

Belgium closes in on Qatargate win 

Belgium closes in on Qatargate win 

After clinching cooperation with one key suspect, the EU corruption case now hinges on securing hard evidence.

Does tiny Belgium have what it takes to convict the alleged perpetrators of a sprawling corruption scandal that is engulfing the European Parliament?

This question hung over conversations in the corridors of Brussels after emergence of the so-called Qatargate allegations in December. But last week, the Belgian prosecutors made a major breakthrough.

Former Italian EU lawmaker Pier Antonio Panzeri, one of four suspects currently detained in the investigation, last Tuesday struck a deal with Belgian prosecutors to exchange information for a reduced sentence.

Panzeri’s agreement to cooperate with authorities is a big boost — not just for the investigation, but also for the Belgians involved, who have a lot riding on it.

Key Belgian politicians, including Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders, have been boasting about the independent work of their country’s judiciary, police and intelligence branches, which led to the arrests. For them, it’s a sign Belgium takes its job as a host country of EU institutions very seriously.

The Qatargate scandal has threatened the credibility of those institutions after prosecutors went public with their investigation in early December. Belgian federal police raided at least 20 locations across Brussels, seizing mobile phones, computers and more than €1.5 million in cash. Four people were arrested on preliminary charges, amid claims that the governments of Qatar and Morocco handed out large sums of cash to get EU politicians to do their bidding.

Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne told POLITICO that through this investigation, the justice department is “showing its teeth.”

“I am confident that the federal prosecutor’s office will do everything possible and get to the bottom of this case,” he said, adding: “It’s no coincidence the law used is the ‘pentiti’ law, because this law was a useful tool in the fight against the Italian mafia.”

The minister is referring to Belgium’s so-called repentants statute, which is being used in the current EU corruption case for only the second time since it was created in 2018. The first — an inquiry into money laundering, bribery and match-fixing in Belgian soccer in 2021 — was also led by Michel Claise, the Belgian investigative magistrate now at the helm of the Qatargate probe.

The second time around, the challenge ahead for Claise — known in Belgium for fighting corruption — is to actually deliver on Qatargate amid widespread leaks to the media from within the investigation.

That means there’s even more pressure on Belgian justice to come up with hard evidence.


Risky leaks


For the defendants, the widespread leaks since the start of the arrests are a bad omen — and welcome ammunition.

Maxim Töller, the lawyer for the Belgian socialist MEP Marc Tarabella, has heavily criticized the investigation. Tarabella’s house was raided and Belgian investigators asked the European Parliament to waive his immunity — although he has not yet been formally charged.

Töller told Claise “there was a huge problem of procedure” due to leaking of key documents to media.

Belgian justice sees the leaks — which include detailed overviews of the investigation, court documents and information from intelligence services — as potentially interfering with the case.

Van Quickenborne told POLITICO last month that the repeated leaking of information is “dangerous” to ensuring justice. The federal prosecutor has opened a separate investigation into the leaks, although this has not stopped them.

The suspects’ defense lawyers could latch onto such leaks to blow procedural holes in the case, or argue that the right to professional secrecy, respect of the presumption of innocence and the right to access sealed documents have been violated. According to the European Convention on Human Rights, every defendant has the right to a “fair and public hearing.”

Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne told POLITICO that through this investigation, the justice department is “showing its teeth”


But in practice, leaks rarely lead to the end of a case, said Raf Verstraeten, a legal expert at the University of Leuven.

“Leaks are unfortunate — but the idea that this would destroy the entire trial is a very, very long shot. We’re absolutely not at that point,” he said. According to Verstraeten, much more would have to happen before a trial gets tossed out for being unfair. “The fact that there are leaks is regrettable, but it does not immediately result in a decision that there is no fair trial.”


No more secrets


What the leaks can do is impede cooperation with other police forces and justice systems — and intelligence, which is key for the Belgians. Above all, they risk undermining trust among the various services involved in the case.

The head of the Belgian intelligence agency, Francisca Bostyn, told Belgian media the leaky case “puts us in trouble with our foreign colleagues. Now it looks like Belgium cannot keep any secrets. Frankly, I think it’s a problem that all our methods are being made public.”

Intelligence from Belgian state security and other secret services was key in kicking off the legal investigation. Yet using information from intelligence services is not always straightforward in a criminal investigation, said two investigators who are not involved in this specific case but have worked with intelligence services on other files.

Pier Antonio Panzeri has agreed to disclose the names of those he admits to having bribed


“Intelligence services often provide you with a lot of key information, but not all that information is usable in court,” one said. Nor are sources always disclosable, the investigator pointed out. “That can make it challenging for the investigators and the prosecution to build a solid case.”

In Belgium, information from intelligence services can be used as supporting evidence, but must be accompanied by other evidence.

Analysis of the money seized needs to help prove where it was drawn and by whom. Above all, it must show whether and how the money could indeed be linked to influencing political decision-making in the European Parliament. If that analysis does not provide enough evidence, the investigation could still fall apart.

Panzeri’s cooperation will be key to building that case. If the Italian shares the information he’s pledged to, this could include details of financial arrangements, the countries involved, who benefited and who else took part. Panzeri has also agreed to disclose the names of those he admits to having bribed.

That means for those who still have something to hide, now is the time to get nervous.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
×