A new volume by historian István Pál explores Hungary’s Cold War espionage operations in the US and UK. New York–Washington–London reveals key cases from 1950–1970, offering rare insight into the shadowy world of state socialist intelligence and its often flawed, yet revealing, tactics abroad.

‘Overall, it is clear that Kraus was a religious Israeli Hungarian publicist who rightly earned the communist dictatorship’s ire. To hinder his activities, a covert procedure was launched, and his conversations and correspondence were monitored both directly and indirectly; in other words, he was treated as an enemy of the regime for decades.’

‘This does not ruin the research activities of “Lantos” in his civilian life, nor does it detract from his achievements as a historian. It merely points to the fact that even the most prominent public figures were sometimes “found” by state security, and some of them, for one reason or another, said yes to collaboration—even if the candidate was Jewish and the target was the State of Israel.’

‘The term “network” is somewhat misleading here, since these individuals were unaware of one another…The agents were connected to something, but not to each other—they were connected to state security, specifically through their handlers. The author describes this as an “extremely centralized, star-shaped network in which every element was linked to a single centre.”’

‘At the next meeting, the recruit brought 35 names, but aside from the list, he provided no descriptions of them whatsoever—even their ages were given only approximately. For some, he didn’t even write out the full name.’

‘It’s equally important to recognize…that at the local level…Arrow Cross members participated in internments, entered ghettos to loot and torture Jews. The author also outlines new directions for both research and remembrance by pointing out that the Jewish victims who had converted to Christianity (the “converts”) are rarely remembered, even though they, too, were often deported and killed.’

‘The surveillance of the Jewish high school is an exemplary case of the repressive policies of the communist dictatorship, in which innocent, sometimes underage individuals were harassed and monitored in a manner that would be considered a severe violation of rights by today’s standards.’

A thought-provoking publication has been released by the Committee of National Remembrance titled Resisters 1944–45. This particularly beautiful, richly illustrated volume briefly presents the life stories of 104 resistance members, accompanied by the insightful narration of expert historians.

‘Borsa first came to the attention of state security in 1960, and from 1962 onward, he became a target of internal counterintelligence under the code name “Milliomos” (Millionaire). Initially, he was monitored within the group file titled “Együttműködők” (The Collaborators), and later a personal file was opened on him.’

‘There were agents who tried to submit reports as meaningless as possible to avoid harming anyone, while others fully embraced their role as secret informants. “Viola” clearly belonged to the latter category—she seemed to take pleasure in reporting on her friends and acquaintances…’

‘According to a letter written five days later, the situation quickly escalated and drew in the emblematic director of the Rabbinical Seminary, Sándor Scheiber…In light of the incident, the leadership of MIOK…turned to Scheiber, requesting in writing that he inform them of the status of the matter within two days.’

‘As documented in multiple historical works, Salgó was a state security agent codenamed “György Sárvári”, who reported on people he knew, most notably, Sándor Scheiber. While we do not intend to absolve him of his actions, certain documents may help readers gain a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the story.’

‘In recent years, articles mentioning this aspect of her life have almost exclusively referenced “Xavér” in this context. While we do not intend to question this moral judgment of her activities as an informant, it is important to recognize that before she became “Xavér”, Benoschofsky was also a victim of the Rákosi regime. Her arrest and interrogation left behind a chilling 284-page dossier.’

‘Chief Rabbi Béla Berend was considered a black sheep in the history of Hungarian Jewish leadership. His controversial activities within the Budapest Jewish Council during the German occupation and the Holocaust of 1944–45, followed by his trial before the People’s Tribunal, left a mark on his legacy.’ The following article provides some additional details about Berend’s activities in the US.

On 12 September 1949 Eduard Landauer, a well-known figure of the Budapest elite for decades, was arrested. At the trial of the lawyer, who had been accused several times before, his accusers did everything they could to find him guilty. His petition for clemency was rejected and the death sentence was carried out on 27 May 1950.

‘Although Miklós Murányi (Menachem Meron) was an important figure in the post-Holocaust recovery and one of the leading Zionist rabbis of the transitional years, his life story remains relatively unknown. The following presents Murányi’s activities during the transitional years (1945–1950), with particular focus on his writings published in the bulletin edited by the Újpest Jewish community.’

‘Jews, he noted, had been at the forefront of radicalism, yet after four years of senseless bloodshed, they were now viewed as exploiters and capitalists. Assimilation, he argued, was not a viable path, particularly in national minority regions…Therefore, Dohány advocated for radicalism while seeking to establish Jewish cultural life within it.’

The obituary of László Geréb, who died in 1962, described him as a Marxist literary historian and a researcher of the class struggle. Perhaps by then no one remembered that Geréb, once known as László G. Gerő, used to be a promising Hungarian Jewish Zionist publicist and journalist.

People’s Courts were special judicial bodies in Hungary set up after WWII, operating between February 1945 and 1 April 1950, established primarily for the purpose of prosecuting war criminals. However, they became the controversial instrument of a regime change originally intended to be democratic, sometimes abused to exact personal revenge.

How did a Jewish 1956 revolutionary become an informant in the Kádár regime, even reporting on his own wife? A tragic story with unexpected twists and turns from the era of retaliation after the revolution.

‘Few things better illustrate the antisemitic recycling of certain Jewish concepts than the quote attributed to Dezső Szabó, “Every Hungarian is responsible for every Hungarian.” Of course, a reader with some knowledge of Jewish tradition will immediately recognize the Talmudic origin of this quote: “kol Yisrael arevim zeh bazeh,” which means, “All of Israel are responsible for one another.”’

This little known case of Hungarian Israeli Rabbi Ottó Komlós not only provides insight into how the Hungarian Communist intelligence services viewed Israel’s most important Holocaust museum and its Hungarian employee, but also highlights the clumsiness of the covert activities of Kádár’s state security services in the early 1960s in Israel.

In the 1960s, the Communist Secret Service launched an undercover operation targeting rabbis and Jewish youth who were engaging in Zionist activities. The investigation ended in some young people being handed suspended prison sentences and a 15-year ban on rabbinic activity for Szeged Rabbi Tamás Raj.

What does a no-go zone mean, and if it is an inaccurate term, what words can we use to describe a well-known reality that few would dare deny since the Amsterdam pogrom and the Hamas protests? The above dilemma is what Viktor Marsai, Omar Sayfo, and Kristóf György Veres try to unravel in their book Whose Space Is It? Parallel Societies and Urban Enclaves in Western Europe, published by MCC Press.

‘Hungarian Jews were generally known for their assimilated and law-abiding nature. By and large, they saw themselves as loyal Hungarian citizens and followed the law of the land to the letter. This was part of a well-rehearsed strategy on the part of their leaders. Between the emancipation of Hungarian Jewry and its nearly complete annihilation, Hungarian Jewish leaders experienced various levels of antisemitism. For most of their history, they could and did turn to the state authorities to ease their suffering. This strategy, useful during the previous decades, turned self-destructive in 1944–45.’

‘According to Dutch intelligence, Iran has used Moroccan Dutch gangsters to eliminate two “enemies of the state” abroad, but it also actively protects clan leaders. Between 2019 and 2021, during the time of the trial of a Moroccan clan chief, a key witness’ brother was killed, followed by his lawyer and finally a crime reporter who was covering the case. And what about antisemitism? Dutch Jews have been sounding the alarm for years.’

‘Mass immigration has changed the face of Europe. This is not to say that all immigrants are evil, but we would be blind to ignore the growing social, ethnic and religious tensions and security challenges that mass migration has brought to Europe in recent decades. As many have pointed out several times, one of the first victims of this is European Jewry.’

‘An important element of Viktor Orbán’s governance is that he knows Hungarian history and has learned from its mistakes. He does not want to repeat the sins committed by the historic Hungarian state during the 20th century. Hungary’s vision has thus not been blinded by the anti-Zionism of woke ideology, and it is able to recognize that Israel is the bastion of democracy and human rights in the Middle East, while successfully holding on to its religious and national traditions.’

‘Is it any surprise that the recent Dutch national elections were won by Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party? Is it surprising that the Dutch are fed up with uncontrolled—and, frankly, uncontrollable—immigration? Who would want to live in a country where there are about three bomb attacks every day? Who would want to run a business or open a shop in such a country? Make no mistake: this is the future from which Orbán is trying to save Hungary.’

‘Although the seemingly insurmountable challenge of these rapid changes may make us justifiably depressed, we need to think about the future of our children. Although they didn’t choose these changes, it is their lives that will be shaped by the processes that are starting now. It is up to us to make our voices heard—and the EP and Hungarian municipal elections will be a good opportunity to do so.’