Image Credit: Thierry Monasse/Getty Images 
Shockwaves ripple across Europe after the European Parliament’s stunning decision to protect Italian far-left extremist Ilaria Salis from prosecution.
Salis, a notorious member of the so-called “Hammer Gang,” is accused of attacking peaceful demonstrators with clubs and hammers during a legally approved march in Budapest in 2023. Several victims were left bloodied and seriously injured.
After spending fifteen months in pre-trial detention in Hungary, Salis walked free the moment she entered the EU Parliament — thanks to her newly gained parliamentary immunity.
Immunity in Brussels vs. Five Years in Prison
While German authorities recently sentenced Lina E., the leader of the same violent group, to more than five years in prison for coordinated assaults on conservatives, Brussels has chosen a very different path. Instead of upholding justice, the European Parliament has turned itself into a sanctuary for violent extremists, shielding them from accountability under the pretense of “protecting democracy.”
Ideology Over Law
The majority for Salis’ immunity came from a coalition of Socialists, Greens, Liberals, and the Left, who claimed that Hungary’s judicial system could not be trusted.
In truth, this was a political maneuver — a declaration that ideological loyalty now outweighs the rule of law. Even CDU MEP Axel Voss joined the leftist bloc, proudly confirming that he voted against removing Salis’ immunity both in committee and in plenary. His stance effectively blocked Hungary’s attempt to bring a suspected violent offender to justice.
MEP Bystron: “EU Parliament Has Lost Its Credibility”
German MEP Petr Bystron condemned the decision in sharp terms:
“With this decision, the EU Parliament has completely lost its credibility,” he said after the vote.
Skandal: Linksextremistin behält Immunität
— Petr Bystron (@PetrBystronAfD) October 7, 2025
Das Europäische Parlament hat komplett seine Glaubwürdigkeit verloren!
Dank den Stimmen der CDU wird der Hammerbanden-Prozess gegen Ilaria Salis blockiert. pic.twitter.com/eFM8vlb4Zv
Bystron knows the system from experience. His own parliamentary immunity was lifted twice — once for sharing a harmless meme mocking Angela Merkel, and once over a fabricated bribery scandal later exposed as a media hit job against EU-critical voices.
For him, the Salis case proves that Brussels applies two standards: conservatives are criminalized for words, while violent activists on the far left are rewarded with protection.
Outrage in Hungary
In Hungary, the reaction was swift and furious. Government spokesman Zoltán Kovács called the EU vote “a disgrace and an endorsement of left-wing terror,” accusing the European Parliament of “harboring a dangerous extremist.”
Officials in Budapest say the decision not only obstructs justice but sends a devastating signal to the victims of political violence — that their suffering can be dismissed for the sake of ideological convenience in Brussels.
A Symbol of Europe’s Double Standards
The case of Ilaria Salis has become more than a courtroom drama. It is a vivid example of Europe’s selective justice — one that vilifies national courts when they act against extremists, yet shelters those same extremists when they find allies inside EU institutions.
Rather than confronting political violence, the European Parliament now appears determined to normalize it — as long as it comes from the “correct” side of the spectrum.
