Former Qatargate prosecutor Claise to run in Belgian national elections

Brussels – Michel Claise, the former Belgian prosecutor in the disputed investigations into the Qatargate case, is running in the Kingdom’s parliamentary elections on June 9, the DéFI party announced in a press conference. Claise will the third candidate of the DéFI party list after the only two MPs elected in the current legislature: not an easy position, but one that, considering his reputation, could lead to an election.

DéFI is a French-speaking political formation that primarily advocates for French-speaking Belgian citizens living in Flemish municipalities, particularly those near Brussels, where they are very numerous.

Claise, now retired, was the magistrate who initiated the Qatargate investigation, arresting then Vice President of the European Parliament Eva Kaili, former Italian MEP Antonio Panzeri, secretary of No Peace Without Justice Niccolò Figà Talamanca, Kaili’s partner Francesco Giorgi, then Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella, while also calling for the arrest of Italy’s Andrea Cozzolino. All are free, some with restrictive measures, while the Beglian judiciary is now probing the investigation, which led to no indictments, for suspected irregularities. He has conducted numerous financial crime investigations during his career.