Both the Belgian “Le Soir” and the Italian “La Repubblica” outline how the circuit operated. Eva Kaili’s first reactions after the arrest of her partner are under the microscope.
The revelations about Qatargate continue from the international press, specifically about the involvement of the former vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, her partner, Francesco Giorgi and the former MEP and alleged “mastermind” of the case, Antonio Pantzeri.
Both the Belgian “Le Soir” and the Italian “La Repubblica” outline how the circuit operated.
At the same time, Eva Kaili’s first reactions, immediately after she was informed of her partner’s arrest, are also under the microscope.
“Le Soir” reports what Francesco Giorgi testified to the investigators about the operation of the ring: “Eva obviously knew about the existence of the money and its source since we lived together, but she was not part of the network. She had told me several times to stop because I was endangering her in relation to her duties,” Giorgi was quoted as saying.
For its part, the Italian newspaper “La Repubblica” reveals what Eva Kaili allegedly testified to the police after her arrest: “After the arrest of my partner, I entered his office. I went through his things to find out why he had been arrested. I called my father, who was with my daughter. I asked him to come and get the suitcase. It was a suitcase from Pancheri that my partner was keeping. I knew my father would be with my daughter because I had put a bottle in the suitcase,” the former vice-president of the European Parliament reportedly testified.
Then “La Repubblica” reveals that Mrs. Caili made some phone calls: “At first I tried to call Panzeri but I couldn’t find him so I tried to contact Mark Tarabella and Maria Arena. They didn’t know why Pancheri wasn’t answering.”
The Italian publication also reports that the Greek MEP also testified that “I opened the suitcase, I also opened the safe. I knew he (s.s. Francesco Giorgi) was saving something for his former boss, Antonio Panzeri and possibly for his current boss, Andrea Cozzolino.”
In fact, in the same deposition, Mrs. Kaili also talks about another suitcase with money that was in her house: “This was the money that (Giortzi) had borrowed for the purchase of the apartment.”
“Repubblica” mentions in its report that the loan for the purchase of the apartment in Brussels had been taken out in the name of Mrs. Kaili and as she testified, the cash “was the contribution of my partner. In that bag was about 50-60,000 euros, I don’t know why I had no intention of investigating his affairs.”
Le Soir: Since 2018, the circuit has been operating
At the same time, “Le Soir” reveals that the operation of the circuit began in 2018 when Pancheri was the president of the Human Rights Committee of the European Parliament. The publication cites what Giorgi allegedly testified to the Police, with the idea of ​​lobbying for Qatar belonging to the defense minister of the Arab country with which Pancheri agreed.
“At the beginning of 2019, the collaboration started. We had fixed the fees, which I have trouble remembering, for our interventions. It was in cash,” Giorgi is reported to have said to the Belgian authorities, while Pancheri is said to have testified that everything started later, specifically in October-November 2019, while he was not an MEP.
Giorgi describes that a few months later they created the NGO Fight Impunity “because we had to find a clean system that wouldn’t raise the alarm”, while referring to plane tickets to Doha that Pancheri was giving away.
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
