European Parliament removes Kaili from post over Qatar graft charges - Reuters

STRASBOURG, Dec 13 (Reuters) - The European Parliament stripped Greek lawmaker Eva Kaili of her elder assembly station connected Tuesday implicit allegations that World Cup big Qatar had bribed her to power decision-making, charges she has denied.

Kaili, 1 of 14 vice presidents successful the parliament, was among four radical arrested and charged successful Belgium implicit the ungraded that has triggered outrage successful Brussels and risks damaging the European Union's image.

The case, successful which constabulary discovered stacks of cash, casts a shadiness implicit the European Parliament which seeks to beryllium a motivation compass, criticising planetary rights abuses and taking EU governments to task implicit immoderate hint of impropriety.

Qatar has denied immoderate wrongdoing.

The parliament acted rapidly to loosen ties with Kaili, with 625 MEPs voting successful favour of the move, lone 1 against and 2 abstaining.

"The integrity of @Europarl_EN comes archetypal and foremost," President Roberta Metsola tweeted.

Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, Kaili's lawyer successful Greece, said earlier connected Tuesday: "Her presumption is that she is innocent, I tin archer you that."

"She has thing to bash with financing from Qatar, nothing, explicitly and unequivocally," Dimitrakopoulos told Open TV successful a archetypal nationalist comment.

Several EU states including Germany, said the 27-nation union's credibility was astatine stake. Countries which person faced disapproval from the assembly, including EU subordinate Hungary, said it had mislaid the motivation precocious ground.

"From present connected the European Parliament volition not beryllium capable to talk astir corruption successful a credible manner," Hungary Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote connected Facebook.

Belgian constabulary searched 19 homes and the offices of the parliament from Friday to Monday arsenic portion of their probe and seized computers, mobile phones and cash, immoderate of it recovered successful a suitcase successful a edifice room.

None of the 4 radical charged person been formally identified, but Kaili's sanction was rapidly leaked to the press.

Belgian prosecutors said they had suspected for much than 4 months that a Gulf authorities was trying to bargain power successful Brussels. Although nary authorities was publically named by prosecutors, a root with cognition of the lawsuit said it was Qatar.

Several European lawmakers called for Kaili to quit.

"Given the grade of the corruption scandal, it is the slightest we could expect of her," said MEP Manon Aubry, who co-chairs the Left group.

Manfred Weber, of the blimpish European's People Party, said: "Our colleagues astatine the European Parliament person been profoundly shocked. These developments correspond a dense burden."

The Greek authorities connected Monday froze Kaili's assets successful her homeland, portion the Greek socialist PASOK enactment said it would expel her from its ranks.

Kaili, 44, a Socialist MEP was among a unchangeable of young aspiring Greek politicians who emerged successful the debilitating indebtedness situation which swept Greece from 2010 to 2015, wherever the state required 3 planetary bailouts.

Additional reporting by Phil Blenkinsop, Karolina Tagaris, Clement Rossignol, Max Schwarz, Lefteris Papadimas, Michele Kambas; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Arun Koyyur, Edmund Blair and Crispian Balmer

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