BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Belgian prosecutors said on Thursday they had detained several individuals over suspected bribery in the European Parliament allegedly for the benefit of China's Huawei. Belgian investigators carried out searches of 21 premises across Belgium and in Portugal on Thursday morning.

Belgian federal prosecutors say they've arrested several people as part of a corruption probe linked to the European Parliament and Huawei.

Huawei is at the center of a fresh scandal in Europe, following allegations that lobbyists bribed members of the European Parliament.

Belgian authorities spearheaded a series of raids across Belgium, Portugal, and France in a corruption investigation, targeting alleged bribery involving Huawei and European Parliament members.

The European Parliament is already facing intense scrutiny over foreign states’ influence on EU decision-making in the Qatargate scandal that erupted in December 2022, when that nation was accused of having sought to influence Brussels and the European Parliament, in particular through bribes and gifts via intermediary organizations.

Belgian police have raided the offices of Huawei as part of a sprawling probe into alleged corruption involving members of the European parliament. An official briefed on the investigation told the Financial Times the Chinese technology company was the target of the probe initiated by Belgian intelligence services.