![EU parliament offices raided in Russia meddling probe](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/78/33/78/EU-parliament-offices-raided-in-Rus-491716.jpg)
-
Coughlin clings to lead at LPGA Canadian Women's Open
-
Trump offers tech sector policy flips ahead of election
-
Spacecraft to swing by Earth, Moon on path to Jupiter
-
What's the fallout of Mexican drug lords' capture?
-
Video game makers see actors as AI 'data,' says union on strike
-
Chinese qualifier Shang to face Thompson in ATP Atlanta semis
-
Concern grows as Venezuela blocks election observers
-
'Massive attack' on French rail threatens more chaos
-
'We did it!': France breathes sigh of relief after Olympics ceremony
-
Blinken, in Laos, set for talks with Chinese foreign minister
-
Regional concern grows as Venezuela blocks vote observers
-
Historic river parade, Dion show-stopper ignite Paris Olympics
-
Rainy Paris Olympic parade dampens many spectators' spirits
-
G20 pledges to work together to tax ultra-rich
-
The one of a kind Paris opening ceremony: five memorable moments
-
Justin Timberlake seeks to dismiss DUI case
-
Warner Brothers Discovery sues NBA over Amazon rights deal
-
Kobe Bryant locker, Maradona jersey up for auction in New York
-
Historic river parade launches Paris Olympics
-
Stocks rise as US inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
New York family of Holocaust victim reclaims Nazi-looted art
-
NASA Mars rover captures rock that could hold fossilized microbes
-
Thousands evacuate season's biggest wildfire in northern California
-
Sinaloa Cartel co-founder pleads not guilty after stunning US capture
-
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
-
Lady Gaga adds sparkle to star-studded Olympic show
-
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
-
Teams sail down Seine in rain-soaked Olympics opening ceremony
-
Norris hoping for more after topping Belgian practice times
-
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
-
Trump slams rivals as he meets Netanyahu in Florida
-
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
-
Mott's England future uncertain as ECB chief fails to offer support
-
Trump meets Israeli PM Netanyahu in Florida
-
S.African police say 95 Libyans detained at suspected military camp
-
Blinken set for talks with Chinese counterpart in Laos
-
Norris heads Piastri in McLaren one-two at Belgian GP practice
-
G20 seeks common ground on taxing super-rich
-
European medicines watchdog rejects new Alzheimer's drug
-
Harris gets vital Obama backing in battle against Trump
-
Habib, Ebden eye Alcaraz and Djokovic shocks at Olympics tennis
-
Stocks rise as inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
-
Two Sinaloa Cartel leaders face US charges after stunning capture
-
Spain train driver jailed for 2.5 years over deadly 2013 crash
-
Paris poised for Olympic opening ceremony spectacular
-
Judoka fails doping test in first case at Paris Olympics
-
Holder and Da Silva keep England at bay after West Indies collapse
-
Alpine F1 boss Bruno Famin to leave in August
-
Ethiopia declares three days of mourning after landslide tragedy
![EU parliament offices raided in Russia meddling probe](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/78/33/78/EU-parliament-offices-raided-in-Rus-491716.jpg)
EU parliament offices raided in Russia meddling probe
Investigators on Wednesday raided the home and offices of an EU parliamentary staffer as Belgium probes claims that Russia paid far-right lawmakers -- including Germany's embattled Maximilian Krah -- to spread Kremlin propaganda.
The searches in Brussels and in Strasbourg, eastern France, were the latest step in a snowballing set of investigations into the meddling claims, which have sparked jitters ahead of EU-wide elections for the bloc's parliament on June 6-9.
A source close to the inquiry said the target was Guillaume Pradoura, a former assistant to Krah of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, who is himself being investigated for suspected ties to both Russia and China.
The Belgian state prosecutor's office said searches were being conducted at a staffer's home in Schaerbeek, northeast Brussels, and at his offices in EU parliamentary buildings in both Brussels and Strasbourg, with cooperation from French authorities.
In a statement, it said the "searches are part of a case of interference, passive corruption and membership of a criminal organisation".
It "relates to indications of Russian interference, whereby members of the European Parliament were approached and paid to promote Russian propaganda via the Voice of Europe 'news website'," the prosecutor's office said.
"There are indications that the European Parliament employee concerned played a significant role in this," it added.
A spokesperson for Krah told AFP the staffer involved had not been on the lawmaker's team for "two years".
"We assume that we are not affected," the spokesperson added.
According to the source close to the Belgian investigation, the probe is more focused on the staffer's former employer than his present one.
Pradoura, who was expelled from France's National Rally five years ago over an anti-Semitic photograph, now works for the Dutch far-right lawmaker Marcel de Graaff.
- 'Pro-Russian narrative' -
Belgian prosecutors opened an inquiry last month into the allegations of Russian interference at the EU Parliament after Czech intelligence exposed an alleged network using EU lawmakers to spread Kremlin propaganda.
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said at the time that Moscow's "clear" objectives were to "help elect more pro-Russian candidates to the European Parliament and reinforce the pro-Russian narrative in that institution".
Voice of Europe, the outlet at the heart of the claims, is allegedly bankrolled by pro-Kremlin businessman Viktor Medvedchuk. It has since been banned under EU sanctions.
EU lawmakers face strict rules regarding independence and ethics, and can face penalties -- financial and otherwise -- if they violate them.
Belgium says its own intelligence services have determined that some lawmakers were paid to promote Moscow's propaganda.
Krah, Pradoura's former boss, was among the figures named in initial reports about the alleged propaganda network. He has denied being paid for his appearances on Voice of Europe.
Krah is at the centre of an escalating series of scandals that led his AfD party to be expelled from its grouping in the EU Parliament, the far-right Identity and Democracy.
German prosecutors began investigating Krah over reports of suspicious payments from Russia and China, after another of his aides was arrested on suspicion of spying for Beijing.
Investigators searched Krah's EU parliament premises earlier this month as part of the probe into that aide, Jian Guo.
Krah remains the AfD's top candidate in the June European election as it is too late to remove him from the position on ballot lists.
German officials separately this month conducted raids targeting a second lawmaker accused of taking money to spread Russian propaganda -- Petr Bystron, the AfD's number two candidate in the EU elections.
M.Odermatt--BTB