Shock in Sweden at death of diplomat questioned for spying
Sweden's foreign minister has spoken of grief among her colleagues after it emerged that a diplomat who was questioned this week on suspicion of spying has been found dead.The man, described as a high-ranking diplomat, was arrested by Sweden's Säpo intelligence service on Sunday and released on Wednesday. He had denied wrongdoing, although prosecutors said he remained under suspicion.Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard released a statement saying her thoughts were with the diplomat's family, friends and colleagues and said it had been a difficult day.She said she could not go into further details about the case. Police said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.
Former foreign minister Carl Bildt described the "tragically deceased ambassador" as extremely gifted and competent, who had worked in various roles within the foreign ministry.Swedish reports said he had spent long periods stationed outside Europe, most recently as an ambassador. Asked to confirm whether the man who died was an ambassador, his lawyer Anton Strand said he had no comment. Images of the door to the diplomat's flat on Swedish TV showed that it had been forced open at the time of his arrest.The diplomat had sought medical treatment for injuries and submitted a report alleging use of excessive force at the time. Säpo said the arrest had been peaceful.Mr Strand said in a statement to the BBC: "I have ensured his formal report about abuse during the arrest has arrived to the special investigations unit. An investigation has started regarding this."Unconfirmed reports from public broadcaster SVT suggest Säpo had been investigating a possible link to the sudden resignation of the new national security adviser, Tobias Thyberg, who quit hours a day after taking on the role.Hours before he resigned, sensitive pictures of him on the dating app Grindr had been sent anonymously to the government.Sweden's national security adviser quits over Grindr imagesMr Strand made no comment on that but said he had received the news of his client's death early on Friday and his thoughts were with his family.Prosecutor Per Lindqvist told Swedish TV that the death was very regrettable and a preliminary investigation into suspected espionage was not complete.Swedish reports said the man was in his 50s and had returned to his home in central Stockholm temporarily after a long period abroad.
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Sky News
an hour ago
- Sky News
Thousands defy ban to join Pride march in Budapest
If Hungary's authorities thought banning this year's Pride march would keep people off the streets, they were wrong. Thousands turned out in Budapest, defying a law which said LGBTQ+ events like this should be cancelled to protect children. The crowd was determined to fight for their rights. "This is a special march, not just because it was the 30th, but also because it was banned," said Orsi, who proudly wore a rainbow headband and waved a rainbow flag. "I mean that's all the more reason to go out on the street and show that Budapest and Hungary is a place where everybody is welcome, where love is equal," she added. Attendees had been warned that just being there could mean a 500 euro fine or prison time for the organisers. They were told police would use facial recognition cameras to identify them, but they didn't care. Orsi said it was worth a fine. Leonas had travelled from Poland to show his support and was also happy to take the risk. "LGBT rights are attacked across the whole world, and we need to defend each other and work with each other," he said. Viktor Orban's government has repeatedly pitched family values against LGBTQ+ rights. "The mother is a woman, the father is a man and leave our kids alone," he told conservative audiences in the past. He says he is protecting Hungary's Christian values, but critics say this is just part of a wider attack on democracy which has happened during his 15 years in control. The Pride ban is just the latest targeting of LGBTQ+ communities. In 2020, the country abolished its legal recognition of transgender people, and in 2021, politicians passed a law banning the depiction of homosexuality to under-18s. While many were outraged by the attempt to cancel the Pride march, a small number of far-right activists organised demonstrations to show their support: "Hungary and the Hungarian nation don't want the aggressive LGBTQ+ propaganda. They are dangerous for our families, they are dangerous for our kids," said Gabor Kelemen, a member of the 64 Counties Youth Movement. However, the packed streets showed many disagree. At one point, as far as the eye could see, the march snaked through streets and across the city's bridges. The sound of drums and whistles mixing with gay anthems blaring out of speakers. The organisers said they believed this will be the largest Pride march ever in Budapest. The crowd was eclectic, with Hungarians from different communities joining a demonstration which many believe is now part of a fight for Hungary's future. "This is not only about the complexity of Pride, not only about love or equality... for Hungarians, it's about sticking together, supporting each other, showing the government that we believe in a different kind of Hungary. We believe in freedom, we believe in democracy," said activist Adam Kanicsar. Despite the ban, today Pride attendees were celebrating a victory. But make no mistake, many in Hungary do not support the parade or what they see as an attack on traditional values. Next year, the country will hold a general election, a vote which will expose how divided Hungary really is.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Budapest Pride draws huge crowds in defiance of Orban legal threats
Reuters Tens of thousands have gathered for the Budapest Pride march, defying Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's legal threats against LGBTQ rights activists. Organisers estimated that a record 200,000 people may have taken part despite mounting pressure from nationalist conservative politicians and police to stop any display of pro-LGBTQ material. The police issued a ban in line with a new "child protection" law restricting gatherings considered to be promoting homosexuality. Orban downplayed the possibility of violent clashes between police and participants, but warned of potential legal repercussions for attendees. Reuters "Of course, the police could break up such events, because they have the authority to do so, but Hungary is a civilised country, a civic society. We don't hurt each other," he told state radio on Friday. "There will be legal consequences, but it cannot reach the level of physical abuse." Attendees risk a fine of up to €500 (£427; $586), with police empowered to use facial recognition technology to identify them. Organisers could face a one-year prison sentence. Luca, 34, who is planning to attend with her mother Enikö, said they want a country of "diversity" which she said they don't currently have. "We have a law that bans people who are different from others to gather. This is why we are here. Because it's hurting our rights. That's why we came." She told the BBC she is worried about her four-year-old daughter's future living "in a country where she can't love anyone she wants to". Barnabás said he was attending to "express my solidarity with the LGBTQ community... because I know what it feels like not being seen and to be treated like an outcast, which obviously everyone here is not". Not part of the community himself, the 22-year-old said he comes from the countryside, where people "are more likely to be xenophobic and homophobic". EU equalities commissioner Hadja Lahbib, a former Belgian foreign minister, is in Budapest and expected to join the march. On Friday, she posted a picture showing her standing with the liberal Budapest mayor Gergely Karacsony in front of a rainbow flag symbolising gay rights. The Pride march "will be a powerful symbol of the strength of the civil society", she wrote on X. Reuters Dozens of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were also expected to be in attendance. Finnish MEP Li Andersson said it was important for her and her European colleagues to be there to show solidarity with both Hungary's LGBTQI community and civil society. "It's important to emphasise that the reason why we are here is not only Pride - this is about the fundamental rights of all of us." She added that she thinks Orban is using arguments on family values as a pretext to ban the march. "[It's] a march that is fundamentally about equality and about equal rights for anyone - for everybody, about the right to love and live with whoever you choose. "And I think that's a core value that any free and democratic society should respect." Reuters Karacsony, a member of Hungary's opposition, has insisted no-one attending the march can face any reprisals as it has been co-organised by city hall, and as such is a municipal event that does not require police approval. Ahead of the Pride, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asked the Orban government not to block the march. Orban was unfazed, asking her "to refrain from interfering in the law enforcement affairs" of EU member countries.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Tens of thousands defy Hungary's ban on Pride in protest against Orbán
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Budapest in defiance of the Hungarian government's ban on Pride, heeding a call by the city's mayor to 'come calmly and boldly to stand together for freedom, dignity and equal rights'. Jubilant crowds packed into the city's streets on Saturday, waving Pride flags and signs that mocked the country's prime minister, Viktor Orbán, as their peaceful procession inched forward at a snail's pace. Organisers estimated that a record number of people turned up, far outstripping the expected turnout of 35,000-40,000 people. 'We believe there are 180,000 to 200,000 people attending,' the president of Pride, Viktória Radványi told AFP. 'It is hard to estimate because there have never been so many people at Budapest Pride.' The mass demonstration against the government was a bittersweet marking of Budapest Pride's 30th anniversary; while the turnout on Saturday was expected to reach record levels, it had come after the government had doubled down on its targeting of the country's LGBTQ+ community. 'We came because they tried to ban it,' said Timi, 49. The Hungarian national was marching with her daughter, Zsófi, 23, who had travelled from her home in Barcelona to join the rally. After the ruling Fidesz party, led by the rightwing populist Orbán, fast-tracked a law that made it an offence to hold or attend events that involve the 'depiction or promotion' of homosexuality to minors, many Hungarians vowed to show their disapproval by attending Pride for the first time. Viki Márton was among those who had made good on the promise, turning up with her nine-year-old daughter. The pair had come equipped with hats, water spray, and a swimsuit, more worried about heat than rightwing protesters. 'I want her to see the reality,' said Márton. 'And I'm so excited to be here!' Earlier this month, police announced they would follow the government's orders and ban the march. The progressive mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, was swift to respond, saying that the march would instead go ahead as a separate municipal event, with Karácsony describing it as a way to circumvent the need for official authorisation. On Saturday, the mayor reiterated why the city had decided to host the event, hinting at how the march had become a symbol of discontent against a government that has long faced criticism for weakening democratic institutions and gradually undermining the rule of law. 'The government is always fighting against an enemy against which they have to protect Hungarian people,' said Karácsony. 'This time, it is sexual minorities that are the target … we believe there should be no first and second class citizens, so we decided to stand by this event.' Akos Horvath, 18, who had travelled two hours from his city in southern Hungary to take part in the march, described it as an event of 'symbolic importance'. Speaking to news agency AFP, he added: 'It's not just about representing gay people, but about standing up for the rights of the Hungarian people.' The sentiment was echoed by fellow marcher Eszter Rein-Bódi. 'This is about much more, not just about homosexuality,' Rein-Bódi told Reuters 'This is the last moment to stand up for our rights.' Tens of thousands of Hungarians, including senior citizens and parents with their children, plus politicians and campaigners from 30 countries, took to the streets on Saturday, despite Orbán's warning on Friday that those who attend or organise the march will face 'legal consequences'. The Hungarian prime minister sought to minimise concerns over violence, however, saying that Hungary was a 'civilised country' and police would not 'break it up … It cannot reach the level of physical abuse'. Still, in a video posted to social media this week, the country's justice minister, Bence Tuzson, warned the Budapest mayor that organising a banned event or encouraging people to attend is punishable by up to a year in prison. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion Speaking to reporters on Friday, the mayor brushed off the threat and downplayed concerns that police would later impose heavy fines on attende s. 'Police have only one task tomorrow: to guarantee the safety and security of those gathered at the event,' said Karácsony. The potential for violence had been amplified after three groups with ties to the extreme right said they were planning counter-marches. As the Pride march got under way, local news site Telex reported that the route of the march had to be changed after one of these groups blocked off a bridge. Analysts had described the government's bid to crackdown on Pride as part of a wider effort to curb democratic freedoms ahead of a hotly contested national election next year. Orbán is facing an unprecedented challenge from a former member of the Fidesz party's elite, Péter Magyar, leading Pride organisers to suggest they are being scapegoated as Orbán scrambles to shore up support among conservative voters. Orbán's government had also prompted concerns across Hungary and beyond after it said it would use facial recognition software to identify people attending any banned events, potentially fining them up to €500 (£425). Ahead of the march, as campaigners scrambled for clarity on whether or how this technology would be used, AFP reported that newly installed cameras had appeared on the lamp-posts that dotted the planned route. The threat had been enough to rattle some. Elton, 30, a Brazilian living in Hungary wore a hat and sunglasses as he took part on Saturday, explaining that he had been worried about jeopardising his job and immigration status, but that his Hungarian boyfriend had persuaded him to attend. 'This is my second time at Pride, but the first time I feel insecure about it,' he said. Mici, a 21-year-old Budapest resident, said she had attended Pride marches in the past but this time had weighed whether to join in after she was spooked by reports of the facial recognition system. 'At first, I was scared to come out because of the news, but I feel safe with so many people.' She hoped that the massive turnout for the march would be enough to push the Orbán government to change its stance. 'I think the crowd that has come from across Europe, the record numbers, will make Hungarian people see that this cause is well-supported.'
