By Marine Strauss and Charlotte Van Campenhout
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgian foreign affairs minister Hadja Lahbib on Thursday survived a vote of no-confidence in Parliament after granting visas to delegations from Iranian and Russian cities to attend a mayors’ convention in Brussels earlier this month.
When in Brussels, the Iranian delegation filmed Belgian-Iranian lawmaker Darya Safai and Iranian opposition members.
The opposition had called for Lahbib’s resignation over the scandal, but 79 MPs voted in support of the minister while 50 voted against and four abstained.
Lahbib’s MR party had threatened to leave the government if she had to resign, which would have made the government collapse.
Two members of coalition parties Ecolo-Groen and PS abstained symbolically to voice that Lahbib will have to regain their parties’ trust.
(Reporting by Marine Strauss, Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Leslie Adler)
