HUNGARY SUFFERS.

Evening Star, Issue 25171, 10 May 1944, Page 2

HUNGARY SUFFERS.

The Nazis, it is said, are carrying out a ruthless purge in Hungary. The Gestapo is killing all Hungarians suspected of knowing the facts which culminated in the German occupation of the country. A natural question would be: Why begin, or end, with them ? The mysterious mind of Hitler, however, has always inclined him to do his best to give an air of legality to his most nefarious proceedings. On whatever pretext it is made, the purge will rid him of those men that lie fears most, and the Hungarians will be getting precisely what they must have expected. There will be less sympathy with Hungary than with other victims, because her course throughout the war had been frankly opportunist and acquisitive. For herself she might plead that she was in the Germans' path and sought only to make the 'best of it. The manner of the occupation will raise no questions for history. Correspondents in London, Cairo, and Lisbon have described it in detail, and their accounts do not disagree. With memories of Austria, Norway, Vichy France, and Northern Italy, the name of Hitler is written all over it. Tim Gestapo will enjoy this new purge. For a year Hungary had been contemplating a break-away from the Axis. In January German firms in the country began to import more " workers " from Germany, by whom the Gestapo was reinforced. Then it was reported that the German minority was being armed secretly. In February Hungarian S.S. troops training in Germany were given special leave to return homo in order to " visit their families." Six German S.S. divisions were stationed in Vienna, ready for movement, and a German chief of police, one Lorenz. came to Budapest to direct the plot. Admiral Horthy and Hitler were 6oon at variance over the return of nine Hungarian divisions from Poland The Germans would not hear of their return. Then, when the Russians drew nearer to the Balkans, Hitler made demands on Horthy which were declined Horthy paid a visit to Hitler—like Schuschnigg and Hacha before him—and while he was absent from the country Germany seized control. A new puppet Government was installed, with guns dominating Budapest, and Parliament went into oblivion. The real ruler of Hungary was Hitler's gauleiter, who, it was surmised, " probably had already got his own organisation fully working in almost every Ministry and important key organisation." The day was the anniversary of the death of the great Hungarian patriot, Kossuth, and the Prime Minister was to have broadcast a great speech on the occasion. Instead, the radio gave a musical interlude. The next day was the anniversarv of the inception of Bela Kun's " Red Terror." The Gestapo will be eager to outvie Bela Kun.