Over 130 Hungarian artists are protesting the inclusion of Northern Irish hip hop group Kneecap in the Sziget Festival’s line-up, citing the band’s support for the Islamist terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah. Signatories argue this goes beyond free expression and promotes hate, contradicting the festival’s core values.
Hungarian journalist Tamás Vajda has sharply criticized the Sziget Festival for inviting Irish hip-hop group Kneecap, accusing the band of supporting terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. In an open letter, Vajda warns that giving such artists a stage reflects a moral failure and puts commercial interests above human rights.
Who started the war? Who is violating international law and committing war crimes? How much damage has Iran suffered, and how much damage can it cause to Israel? Our interview with Morteza Moradian, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Budapest, about the context of the war.
Hungary has received extensive negative coverage from the mainstream media in the West after the National Assembly passed a law restricting the Budapest Pride march earlier this year. Back in 2019, however, the coverage was very different when city officials in Modesto, California, denied the permit for a straight pride parade.
The Gaza war and Israel’s harsh tactics have damaged the Jewish state’s international reputation. Despite Israel’s right to self-defence, antisemitism has intensified globally. Recognizing this new threat, Israel is seeking new allies—and has already found one in Hungary.
Liverpool FC has announced the signing of 20-year-old Hungarian goalkeeper Ármin Pécsi from Puskás Akadémia. Midfielder and Hungarian national team captain Dominik Szoboszlai is already playing for the reigning English champions; while another Hungarian international, left-back Milos Kerkez, is reportedly close to joining the Reds.
‘It is important to understand the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate’s place in the intricate interplay of local and international as well as sacred and profane interests that often seems to govern every important decision in the Holy Land. Pious pronouncements…from Europe and elsewhere abroad almost invariably collapse under the weight of the sheer complexity of local realities…’
‘It is hard to imagine a better example of “Stockholm syndrome” than this sorry episode, when local Catholics and even the Vatican seemed more intent on supporting la Résistance than protesting the occupation of the birthplace of Jesus Christ by Muslim militants. Perhaps some occupations are more just than others.’
‘However we choose to understand the situation, the 7 October attacks absolutely do not “prove” that Trump’s approach with the Abraham Accords was in error. Instead, these attacks suggest that his innovative approach was too successful for malign actors such as Hamas to accept without taking spectacular and spectacularly risky measures to combat the success and promise of the Abraham Accords.’
‘In October of 2021, in the same elementary school, the homoerotic book, All Boys Aren’t Blue by George Johnson, was an approved book in the school library. Parents were criticizing the book at a school board meeting, but what was tragically comical is that the local newspaper couldn’t accurately report on the book because of pornography laws.’