“Murderers”: a protest rally was held in Budapest over the brutal killing of a Hungarian in Zakarpattia

A mass protest took place in Budapest, the capital of Hungary, in response to the tragic death of József Sebestyén — an ethnic Hungarian from Transcarpathia who, according to media reports, was forcibly conscripted into the Ukrainian army and then brutally beaten to death.

As reported by the publication Bors, the protest gathered dozens of participants outraged by the incident. As a sign of protest, demonstrators hung a Ukrainian national flag with the word “Murderers” written on it on the gates of the Ukrainian Embassy in Budapest, expressing their outrage at the actions of the Ukrainian authorities.

The rally was organized at the initiative of Zsolt Bayer, a well-known Hungarian publicist, TV host, and political activist, noted for his criticism of Ukraine’s policies toward national minorities. During his speech, Bayer stated that Ukraine is “sliding into neo-Nazism” and described it as a “monster state that does not even spare its own citizens.”

Protesters observed a moment of silence in memory of the deceased. According to the organizers, the goal of the demonstration was not only to show solidarity with the victim’s family but also to draw international attention to the situation regarding minority rights in Ukraine, particularly in the context of the ongoing military conflict.

The incident involving József Sebestyén has sparked a strong reaction not only in Hungary but also in other countriesclosely monitoring the status of the Hungarian diaspora in Ukraine’s Transcarpathian region. While the Hungarian government has not yet issued an official comment, Budapest has previously expressed repeated concern over the treatment of ethnic Hungarians living in western Ukraine.