Ilaria Salis, the Italian “Antifa terrorist’ accused of attempted murder for a bloody hammer attack on Hungarian nationalists in 2023, has now been elected to the European Parliament. As a result, she is now set to be released from Prison following her electoral win earlier this week.
- Salis was elected a member of the Green and Left Alliance party and will now be released due to MEP immunity.
- The 40-year-old school teacher made headlines after it was alleged she took part in a bloody attack alongside a gang of violent anti-White extremists. Their victims were perceived as right-wing Nationalists attending Hungary’s annual Day of Honor rally.
- Salis had been jailed for 15 months for attempted murder after Hungarian authorities asserted she targeted seven people and beat them with hammers, rods, and other blunt-force objects that left victims seriously injured. Had she been convicted, Salis would have faced 20 years in prison.
- Salis’ Antifa cell was said to have been inspired by Lina Engel, a so-called “expert” on “far-right extremism” who was convicted for orchestrating numerous highly sophisticated attacks, including the bombing of a pub suspected to have once served “right-wing” patrons.
Further context: Salis’ pre-trial detention sparked protests among fellow extremists demanding her release due to a perception that prison under a right-wing Victor Orban would be oppressive for a member of the Antifa movement.
- Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, once told the Italian parliament that Salis faced “degrading and humiliating” treatment from the Hungarians after she was filmed handcuffed during a court hearing.
- “Their aim was to assault selected victims by various means capable of taking their lives, in order to inflict on them the humiliation of serious, life-threatening injuries,” said the Hungarian court.
- In May, however, Hungarian courts eventually granted Salis’s demand to be moved to house arrest, but only upon payment of 40,000 euros ($43,000) bail.
Why it’s important: Salis’s ascension to EU politics comes amid increased progress for Nationalism across the Western world. Her membership in the anti-White extremism movement, commonly referred to as “Antifa,” could result in disastrous policymaking decisions and friction with the populist right.
- This week’s EU elections saw the rise of several so-called “far-right” and Nationalist parties, namely France’s National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, and Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland (AfD).
Have a story? Please forward any tips or leads to the editors at [email protected]
