Orbán accuses Ukraine over church fire in Zakarpattia - Police respond
Photo: An unknown person set fire to a church in Zakarpattia (facebook.com/orbanviktor)
In Ukraine’s Zakarpattia region, unknown individuals left a provocative message on the wall of a church and set it on fire. The incident sparked a sharp reaction from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, according to Orbán’s post and a statement from Zakarpattia police.
What Orbán said
The Hungarian Prime Minister claimed that unknown individuals had set fire to a church in Zakarpattia. A message reading "Hungarians to the knives" was found on its wall.
"Forced mobilization, killings, arson of churches, incitement, intimidation. All this is happening to our people, to Hungarians, in Zakarpattia," Orbán wrote.
Police response
Police reported that the incident occurred on July 16 at around 10:00 p.m. in the village of Palad-Komarivtsi.
An unidentified individual entered the church grounds and set fire to the front door. They also spray-painted "a provocative message aimed at inciting national and religious hatred" on the building’s facade.
As of now, police and Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) are working to identify those involved.
Scandal with Hungary
On July 10, Hungarian authorities claimed that a Hungarian citizen was allegedly beaten to death by Ukrainian military enlistment officers in Zakarpattia.
However, Ukraine’s Ground Forces responded that this information was false, stating the man died of a pulmonary artery thromboembolism.
