Student’s Scholarship Revoked After Disrupting Israeli Professor’s Lecture at ELTE
A student studying in Hungary under the Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship program is facing the revocation of their scholarship after participating in the disruption of a lecture delivered by an Israeli professor at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) . The announcement was made by Balázs Hankó , Hungary’s Minister of Culture and Innovation, during
the third Pro Israel conference in Budapest. Speaking at the event organized by the Center for Fundamental Rights , Hankó stated that “two weeks ago, young people studying in our country crossed a line that we cannot allow.” He confirmed that one of the disruptive individuals was an international scholarship student, prompting him to initiate the cancellation of that student’s funding. The Center for Fundamental Rights, in a social media post, recapped the events leading to the decision. According to their statement, individuals wearing Palestinian scarves disrupted a lecture by Alexander Yakobson , a left-wing historian from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, at ELTE’s Faculty of Humanities. The organization stressed that “Hungary has zero tolerance for anti-Semitism and support for terrorist organizations.” Following the incident, Minister Hankó instructed Tempus Public Foundation , the body responsible for managing the Stipendium Hungaricum scholarships, to reinforce contractual provisions for all scholarship recipients. The updated conditions make it clear that any student who violates public peace or national security at a Hungarian university will lose their scholarship immediately . At the conference, Hankó signed a formal letter related to the decision and reiterated the government’s stance: “Those who do not respect that Hungary is a peaceful country have no place among scholarship holders.” The minister also posted on Facebook shortly after the disruption, writing that “every provocation must be nipped in the bud.” He stated that he had requested ELTE’s leadership to conduct a swift investigation into the incident and take appropriate action. In a letter published online and addressed to Rector Lénárd Darázs , Hankó urged the university to hold all individuals involved accountable and ensure a secure and peaceful academic environment for future lectures, courses, and public events. “Hungary is a peaceful country, and anyone who comes to Hungary must respect this,” Hankó emphasized, adding that the government is committed to maintaining peace so that “people everywhere in the world can rely on this fact.”
