Hungary warns its EU partners not to attend 'banned' pride parade
Pride organizers, in turn, sent a letter to embassies insisting the police had no right to ban the event – organized by the city council – and that the march is "neither banned nor unlawful," vowing it will go ahead as planned. "We continue to work on ensuring that Hungary's largest Pride takes place this Saturday in a safe and secure environment," Budapest Pride president Viktoria Radvanyi said.
Since Prime Minister Viktor Orban returned to power in 2010, Hungary has passed a series of laws criticized at home and across the European Union for curtailing LGBTQ+ rights in the name of "child protection."
Last week, police banned the country's main Pride march from taking place in Budapest, but the capital's mayor has defied the interdiction, saying that police had no right to ban an event organized by city hall and vowing it would go ahead as planned.
Police have said the ban was necessary under recent legislation that bans the promotion of same-sex relationships to under-18s. The conflict over the Pride march has already sparked protests in Hungary. Attendees risk a fine of up to €500 ($580). Police may use facial recognition technology to identify them. Organizers risk a one-year prison sentence.
EU officials expected to attend
Several members of the European Parliament have said they will attend the parade. European equalities commissioner Hadja Lahbib is expected in Budapest on Friday and may attend the march, as may ministers from several European Union countries, according to the organizers.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on the Hungarian authorities to reverse the ban and not to punish organizers or participants. "I call on the Hungarian authorities to allow the Budapest pride to go ahead, she wrote on X, calling herself an LGBTQ+ ally.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
6 hours ago
- Euronews
Kilis-Aleppo natural gas pipeline opened: Gas flow to Syria started
The export of natural gas from Azerbaijan to Syria via Turkey began on Saturday with the opening of the Turkey-Syria natural gas pipeline. The inauguration ceremony was held in the Turkish city of Kilis only seven kilometres from the Syrian border. It was attended by Turkish Minister for Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bakyraktar, Qatar Development Fund President Fahad Hamad Al-Sulaiti, Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed Al-Bashir and Azberbaijani Economic Minister Mikayıl Jabbarov. In his opening speech, Bayraktar said that the new pipeline means the electricity supply in Syria will be increased from between three and four hours a day to ten hours a day. Electricity will now be exported from Turkey to Syria from eight different points, Bayraktar said, with the export capacity expected to increase in the coming years. "With the new connections, the capacity will reach 860 megawatts," he said. Speaking to Euronews, Bayraktar said that European countries expecting Syrians to return home "need to put concrete projects in place to turn expectations into reality." He said that "Turkey has been an important host" to Syrians who fled their country due to war. While many of these people want to return to their home country, he said the conditions need to be provided for them to do so. "Many countries, especially European countries, refuse our Syrian brothers and sisters and do not accept them, Turkey has been and continues to be a very important host in this sense." "Syria has many needs, infrastructure needs and other needs. Therefore, it is important for the European Union countries, European countries, Western countries to support, embrace and contribute to these projects that are necessary for the normalisation of life there in this sense," he said. The minister had previously announced that Turkey would cooperate with Azerbaijan and Qatar in natural gas exports to Syria. He said that a significant increase in energy production would help with "accelerating the return" of Syrians in Turkey. Bayraktar also announced the signing of an agreement with Azerbaijani state-owned oil and gas company SOCAR for natural gas. Energy cooperation Immediately after the EU and the US lifted sanctions on Syria, it was announced in May that a $7 billion (€6.04 billion) strategic cooperation agreement was signed between Kalyon Holding and Cengiz Holding from Turkey, UCC from Qatar, Power International from the US and the Syrian Ministry of Energy. Within the scope of the agreement, the groups intended to build natural gas cycle power plants across Syria within the next three years. A solar power plant is also expected to be built in around two years. The consortium aims to ensure Syria's energy supply security, environmental sustainability and regional development. Energy supply during the civil war Syrians have been struggling with serious energy shortages since the start of the civil war. The years-long war paralysed more than 50 percent of the country's electricity grid, reducing electricity generation capacity from 8,500 megawatts to 3,500 megawatts. It is stated that the main reason for this is the serious damage to power plants in the regions of Mkharde, Aleppo and Zayzoun. Before the civil war in 2011, Syria was producing and exporting 400 thousand barrels of oil per day. However, now it can only produce 20 thousand barrels and is dependent on imports. The natural gas sector, which was just developing in 2011, is almost non-existent today.
Euronews
8 hours ago
- Euronews
Domestic violence in Germany has never been so high, new report shows
The number of victims of domestic violence in Germany reached a new high in 2024, German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reports, citing the latest data from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). Around 256,942 cases were registered—more than ever before, the report shows. Compared to the previous year, this represents an increase of around 3.7 per cent, although experts warn that the number of unreported cases is likely to be much higher, as many offences in private settings are often not reported. In 2023, official statistics showed the number of femicides in Germany was already almost three times as high as in the previous year— on average, a woman is killed almost every day, and in most cases, the perpetrator is the (ex-)partner. Going by the rising numbers, the use of ankle bracelets for offenders is being proposed in Germany based on the Spanish model. They are already in use in Hesse and Saxony, and the federal government says it is planning a nationwide regulation. Germany to offer nationwide counselling service According to the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, possible reasons for the rise in domestic violence are seen in a growing willingness to use violence "in the light of social crises and personal challenges." However, the ministry also emphasised that a greater willingness to report violence could play a role. Back in February, the Bundesrat - after the Bundestag - approved a law aimed at significantly improving the protection of victims of violence. In the future, the federal states will be obliged to provide nationwide protection and counselling services. The federal government will provide a total of 2.6 billion euros for this between 2027 and 2036. A legal entitlement to free protection and counselling is to apply from 1 January 2032. Until now, victims of domestic or gender-based violence have had to rely on existing capacities—for example, among women's refuges. Another interesting fact: in 2023, the proportion of women who were not born in Germany and sought refuge in a women's shelter was 69 per cent, as in the previous year. So, what is the situation like in other European countries? Italy In Italy, the anti-violence hotline 1522 received 48,000 calls and text messages in the first nine months of last year - an increase of 57 per cent compared to the same period in 2023. The figures published by the Italian Ministry for Equal Opportunities show that many women sought help after the brutal murder of university student Giulia Cecchettin in November 2023, which sparked a major debate about feminicide in Italy. Cecchettin had been killed by her ex-boyfriend Filippo Turetta, who was arrested near Leipzig after fleeing to Germany. Turetta confessed the crime to the public prosecutor's office and said that Giulia "could not have belonged to anyone else." In Italy, there is no official data on the number of victims of intimate partner violence or domestic violence recorded by the police each year. Portugal In Portugal, the police (PSP) said they arrested 1,281 people on suspicion of domestic violence in 2024, an increase of 310 (or 32%) more arrests and 282 (1.8%) more reports compared to the previous year. The Metropolitan Police also registered 15,781 complaints relating to domestic violence. Of the 1,281 arrests registered, 625 were "in flagrante delicto," police said. Spain According to the Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain recorded 8,860 victims of domestic violence against whom protection orders or restraining orders were issued in 2024, a decrease of 2.9% compared to the previous year. 60.6% of these victims were women, while the proportion of men was 39.4%, official data showed. Overall, the number of murders of women in Spain has fallen by around a third since 2003. The sharp drop comes after several dastardly acts of violence against women around the turn of the millennium triggered far-reaching changes. At that time, women took to the streets across the country—with success: stricter laws and more comprehensive support services for those affected followed. At the same time, however, the number of reported sexual offences has been rising continuously for years. Whether this is due to an actual increase in sexual violence or a growing willingness to report offences remains unclear. The Spanish Ministry of the Interior attributes the increase at least in part to the fact that such offences are less tolerated by society today - and the willingness to report offenders has increased. Romania The Romanian police announced that more than 61,000 cases of domestic violence were reported in the first six months of 2025, in almost equal proportions in urban and rural areas. Police officers there intervened in 61,431 cases of domestic violence in the first half of 2025. However, figures show that the number of domestic violence-related offences fell by 19% in the first six months of the year compared to the previous year: from 28,117 to 22,742. At 56% (12,807), "beatings and other violence" accounted for the largest proportion of offences in Romania. Poland Recent figures are not available in Poland, but in 2023, a law was introduced for additional measures that can be taken against perpetrators of domestic violence, including psychological and therapeutic programmes aimed at "preventing the perpetrator from continuing to use violence and developing self-control and non-violent conflict management skills". Authorities say offenders who refuse to participate in these programmes face fines or even imprisonment. The law also allows for the confiscation of firearms, ammunition and gun licences from perpetrators of domestic violence. According to a study commissioned by the government but never officially published, 60% of Polish women have experienced domestic violence, and 10% of men do not believe that marital rape is an offence. England Figures in England and Wales from last year to March 2024 estimate that around 2.3 million people aged 16 have experienced some form of domestic violence. Of this number, 1.6 million were women and 712,000 were men. According to Women's Aid's Domestic Abuse Report 2024, social services reported that survivors often did not have enough money to pay for the things they and/or their children needed (79.8%) and that they relied on food banks (78.8%). A disturbing 62.5% of services also reported that victims were economically unable to leave the perpetrator. Even today, the way femicides are reported remains problematic, especially in the German media, where femicides are defined as "relationship drama" where perpetrators "lose control" of themselves.
Euronews
10 hours ago
- Euronews
Planes drop aid into Gaza as Israeli fire reportedly kills at least 18
Planes dropped aid from European countries and beyond into Gaza on Saturday, though both aid groups and Palestinians say changes have been only incremental. The aid comes from a coalition of Jordan-led nations, including Germany, France and Spain. To circumvent restrictions on aid trucks crossing overland into Gaza, they have orchestrated parcels being dropped from the skies. French President Emmanuel Macron said that the first French aid drop of several tonnes of food was carried out on Friday and that more would continue over the weekend. Spain reportedly dropped 12 tonnes of aid deployed in 24 parachutes. This is enough for around 11,000 people, according to Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares. Germany said 14 tonnes of food and medical aid was dropped off by plane, but German Foreign Minister Johan Wadephul said that 'sufficient quantities of relief supplies can only be provided to the people by land.' Both Italy and the Netherlands are set to begin airdropping aid into Gaza next week, according to the country's governments. 'We expect Israel to do more to enable humanitarian aid via land routes and to fully honour its humanitarian agreements with the EU,' Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp told the Dutch parliament. 'The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza must end.' Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he had given the green light to military forces for the 'transport and airdrop of basic necessities to civilians in Gaza, who have been severely affected by the ongoing conflict.' Hunger has grown in Gaza during the past 22 months of war between Israel and Hamas because of aid restrictions, humanitarian workers warn. Experts say the 'worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in Gaza.' Israel enforced a complete blockade on food and other supplies for two and a half months beginning in March. It said its objective was to increase pressure on Hamas to release dozens of hostages it has held since its attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Though the flow of aid resumed in May, the amount is a fraction of what aid organizations say is needed. Situation on the ground At least 18 people were killed by Israeli fire in Gaza on Saturday, according to local hospitals. Eight of these people were reportedly aid seekers. Near a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution site, Yahia Youssef, who had come to seek aid Saturday morning, described a panicked scene now grimly familiar. After helping carry out three people wounded by gunshots, he said he looked around and saw many others lying on the ground bleeding. 'It's the same daily episode,' Youssef said. In response to questions about several eyewitness accounts of violence at the northernmost of the Israeli-backed American contractor's four sites, the GHF media office said 'nothing (happened) at or near our sites.' The group's efforts to deliver aid to Gaza has been marred by violence and controversy. However, Israel and the GHF have said they have only fired warning shots and that the death toll of aid seekers has been exaggerated. An Israeli strike also hit a family house in an area between the towns of Zawaida and Deir al-Balah, killing two parents and their three children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Another strike hit a tent close to the gate of a closed prison where the displaced have sheltered in Khan Younis, killing a mother and her daughter, they said. Israel's military did not immediately respond to questions about the strikes or deaths near the aid sites. Hostage's families protest to end war Families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and their supporters protested in Tel Aviv and urged their government to push harder for the release of their loved ones. US President Donald Trump's special envoy to the region Steve Witkoff joined them a day after visiting Gaza. Of the 251 hostages who were abducted when Hamas led an attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, around 20 are believed to be alive in Gaza. The war began when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing 1,200 people, most of them civilians. A subsequent Israeli offensive has to date killed over 60,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry whose figure does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. The Israeli military says almost 900 of its soldiers have died since the start of the war.
