Hungarian Militia Called Jews ‘Locusts’ And ‘Rats’ — And Sebastian Gorka Praised It
Image by Getty Images
How much does the Hungarian Guard, a paramilitary organization praised by controversial White House aide Sebastian Gorka, hate Jews?
István Dósa, a captain in the Guard, called Jews “Zionist rats” and “locusts,” while also condemning “Zionist-Bolshevik genocide” and labeling Hungarian Jews “nation-destroyers.” Gábor Vona, one of the group’s founders, has framed its goals as protecting “ethnic Hungarians,” who in his words lacked “physical, mental or spiritual self-defense.”
The European Court of Human Rights has upheld a government ban on the group, which the high court said was aimed at fomenting “racial conflict.” The militia was affiliated with the far-right Jobbik party.
Concerns about the Hungarian Guard and its anti-Semitism did not faze Gorka when he was active in that country’s politics as a leader of the right-wing New Democratic Coalition. He openly backed the militia in a video revealed by the Forward.
“This type of accusation is the very useful tool of a certain political class,” he said, dismissing an interviewer’s questions about the militia’s hatred of Jews.
He also mocked criticism of their black outfits, a throwback to Nazi collaborators, noting that some police also wear black uniforms. “Who talks about a fascist police in Hungary?” he asked.
Contact Daniel J. Solomon at solomon@forward.com or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Today is the last day of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need you to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Today is the last day to contribute.
