Italian Antifa activist Ilaria Salis will remain under house arrest until her trial concludes, with another hearing scheduled for Friday in Budapest. However, she could be released if she wins a seat in the European elections. The third court hearing in her case started this morning.
Ilaria Salis, an Italian anti-fascist activist, was moved from a Budapest prison to house arrest on Thursday morning after spending over 15 months in custody. ‘We finally have the chance to hug her again; we hope this is a temporary stage before finally seeing her in Italy,’ said Roberto Salis, her father, who is also an activist from Milan.
This change followed a Hungarian court’s decision on 15 May to uphold Salis’ appeal against her pre-trial detention. Now under house arrest in an apartment in Budapest, Salis will be monitored with an electronic bracelet. It took several days to implement the judges’ decision after a €40,000 bail payment was made.
Salis was arrested on 11 February 2023, along with two German activists, on charges of participating in the assault of three people as a member of a criminal organization. Salis’ lawyers are hopeful for a commitment ‘from the Italian authorities to secure Ilaria’s immediate transfer to Italy,’ as required by European law.
After months of diplomatic tensions and protests against Hungary over Salis’ pre-trial detention, her case saw a significant development when she was nominated by the Left Green Alliance for the upcoming European elections in June.
While mainstream media outlets continue to refer her as a ‘teacher’ and the victims she is believed to have assaulted as ‘neo-Nazis’, the Italian NGO Liberiamo Ilaria Salis (which translates as ‘Let’s Free Ilaria Salis’) posts banners on social media reading ‘Free All Antifas – On the Right Side of History’ (sic) and keeps referring to her as a ‘comrade’.
Related articles:
