Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Investigations are currently continuing with two members of the European Parliament, following the lifting of their immunity last week, one of whom is the Italian representative, Andrea Cozzolino, who was arrested in Naples on Friday evening, according to Italian media. The Belgian Federal Prosecutor's Office had issued a European arrest warrant for the Italian, the ANSA news agency writes. The Brussels Federal Prosecutor's Office announced that a search was also carried out at Cozzolino's home in earlier in the day. The deputy was arrested as he was leaving a hospital in Naples.
Walloon politician Mark Tarabella was arrested the same morning as part of an investigation into corruption in the European Parliament. According to the Belgian TV VRT and confirmed by the Federal Prosecutor's Office. And investigating judge Michel Claes will have to decide after the hearing whether or not to arrest the man. The police searched a place in the offices belonging to the members of the European Parliament. The offices in the town hall were also searched in his place of residence, according to the Flemish broadcaster VRT report. Media reports in Brussels said that in December, it emerged that Qatar and Morocco were suspected of bribing members of the European Parliament to influence decisions.
The Walloon Belgian parliamentarian was the vice-chairman of the European Parliament's Committee on Relations with Qatar, and a Belgian newspaper said in a headline, "Suddenly Trabella became a supporter of Qatar's bid to host the World Cup in football."
A few days ago, the European Parliament lifted the parliamentary immunity of Belgian Marc Tarabella and Italian Andrea Cozzolino. This was done at the request of the Belgian court, which wants to further investigate the role of the two deputies in a case known as "Qatargate".
After unanimous approval in the Legal Affairs Committee days earlier, the plenary session gave the green light by show of hands to lift the parliamentary immunity of the two MPs. It happened quickly. And the whole procedure was completed within a few weeks, while it usually takes several months.

According to the Belgian media, Tarabella himself voted to lift the immunity. In his response, he recalled that he had insisted "from the early days" on raising his immunity so that he could "answer questions from investigators and assist the judiciary in shedding light on this file."
"Out of respect for the judicial authorities and investigative work, I have not commented on allegations in the press," said Belgian parliamentarian Tarbella. "It was very tempting, especially because I am innocent, but I have not spoken yet and will not do so today, and I will give all the information I have to the judge. In any case, know that it is I really have nothing to blame myself for,"
The request to lift the immunity of Tarabella and Cozzolino came from the Belgian authorities. It is part of an investigation into possible corruption in the European Parliament, in which third countries allegedly tried to influence decision-making by offering large sums of money or large gifts to people strategically located in Parliament. Qatar and Morocco are mentioned.
In this investigation, a series of home searches were carried out in December. Investigators seized a total of 1.5 million euros. Six people were arrested and four of them were arrested, including former Vice President Eva Kayli and former MEP Pier Antonio Panziri. Meanwhile, Panziri agreed to cooperate with the judiciary as a penitent.
In recent weeks, the media has reported that Panziri accuses Tarabella of taking bribes. The report on the lifting of parliamentary immunity also refers to the allegations of the Italians that the Belgian "repeatedly obtained a reward estimated at a total estimated sum of 120,000 to 140,000 euros". At the beginning of December, the home of the mayor of the Belgian commune of Liège was searched. It is not known if any incriminating material was found.
Tarabella and Cozzolino belong to the S&D socialist group, the second largest political family in the European Parliament. After the scandal broke, they were immediately suspended from the group. Both are currently not associated with membership in the European Parliament. Tarabella was also expelled from the Socialist Party PS in his native Belgium.