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A report by news portal Mandiner has sent shockwaves through Budapest’s political circles. According to the report, Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi allegedly passed Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó’s phone number on to foreign intelligence services. Government sources say the trail leads directly to the inner circle of the TISZA party.
In the midst of the Hungarian election campaign, serious allegations have been leveled against investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi and the foreign policy chief of the opposition TISZA party, Anita Orbán. The accusations are based on an anonymous email from a sender named “Fourth Estate” that was leaked to Mandiner.
Szabolcs Panyi: the foreign asset in journalist’s clothing
— Zoltan Kovacs (@zoltanspox) March 23, 2026
Szabolcs Panyi: the foreign asset in journalist’s clothing
A recently surfaced recording has placed The report states that audio recordings prove that Szabolcs Panyi—a journalist for websites Direkt36 and VSquare—was in direct contact with government agencies of an unnamed EU member state.
Szabolcs Panyi is said to have admitted to passing on two phone numbers: his own and that of the current Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.
In the recordings, Szabolcs Panyi is said to explain that this enabled foreign intelligence services to monitor the minister’s communications—who calls him and whom he contacts. Szabolcs Panyi is quoted as saying: “It works like this: they monitor a number (…) and see who calls that number.”
The scandal is spreading to the political arena, as Szabolcs Panyi maintains a close personal relationship with Anita Orbán (TISZA Party). In the conversation, he refers to her as “almost a friend” and mentions their shared history on the 2010 campaign staff, when Anita Orbán was still planning to run for Fidesz.
In the recordings, Szabolcs Panyi suggests that, in the event of a change in government by the TISZA Party, he would be able to exert significant influence over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He speaks of making personnel recommendations to Anita Orbán (regarding who should be fired or retained) and of gaining access to secret government documents and files through her.
Szabolcs Panyi justifies his interest in Péter Szijjártó’s phone calls by citing the latter’s close ties to Moscow. He mentions a conversation between the Hungarian foreign minister and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov from 2020. According to Szabolcs Panyi, this proves that Hungary provided support to the then-Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini during the election campaign by arranging a visit to Moscow.
— Zoltan Kovacs (@zoltanspox) March 23, 2026
BREAKING: New details from a leaked audio recording suggest a coordinated intelligence-linked operation targeting Hungary’s foreign minister, 
The recording indicates that journalist…The publication triggered a wave of reactions across the entire political spectrum.
Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó reacted with outrage, calling it a “huge scandal” and an unacceptable interference in the Hungarian election campaign.
He defended his talks with Sergei Lavrov as normal diplomatic activity. “In eleven and a half years, I have participated in about 120 EU Council meetings. It is completely natural to coordinate with partners from third countries such as Russia, Türkiye, or the U.S. before and after these meetings,” the minister explained.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán also weighed in. He called it “shameful” that the surveillance apparently took place in the interest of the TISZA party.
He said he had already instructed the Minister of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation into the case.
“We will seek redress for this,” the prime minister stated at a campaign event on Monday in Kecskemét.
Anita Orbán dismissed the allegations on Facebook as “dishonest attacks.” She countered that the real scandal was that Péter Szijjártó regularly passed on confidential information from EU and NATO bodies to Russia. Regarding Szabolcs Panyi, she wrote:
We have met only twice in the last two years. I do not coordinate with him or with other journalists on personnel matters.”
László Toroczkai, leader of the right-wing opposition movement “Mi Hazánk” (Our Homeland), described Szabolcs Panyi as an agent of an “international deep state.” According to him, Szabolcs Panyi regularly disseminates information that can only be obtained through operational intelligence means.
László Toroczkai emphasized that Péter Szijjártó’s phone calls with Sergei Lavrov were not a crime, but rather part of a foreign minister’s job.
If Péter Szijjártó, as foreign minister, were unable to arrange the secure line himself, that would be such a lack of professionalism and a threat to national security that one would be better off not even thinking about it,”
said László Toroczkai. He said, however, the statements suggesting that Szabolcs Panyi could influence TISZA Party foreign minister candidate Anita Orbán are dangerous.
Ahhoz nem kell titkosszolgálat, hogy tudjuk, Panyi Szabolcs nem újságíró, és nem független. A március 15-i beszédemben is utaltam rá. Csak a hülye nem látta, hogy annak a nemzetközi mélyállamnak az ügynöke, amely államok felett áll, de kormányokat, titkosszolgálatokat mozgat.… pic.twitter.com/IYwydkazAN
— Toroczkai László (@ToroczkaiLaszlo) March 23, 2026
The Mandiner portal is using the case to also address the funding of Szabolcs Panyi’s employers. Both Direkt36 and VSquare received funds from the Open Society Foundations (George Soros) as well as the U.S. agency USAID. Szabolcs Panyi himself completed the U.S. State Department’s Edward R. Murrow Press Fellowship—a program often portrayed by critics as a recruitment tool for foreign agents of influence.
Shameful but not surprising to see what USAID-funded “journalism” actually did in central Europe.
The most notable “investigative” journalist on the left in Hungary doxxed private government phones to foreign intel services for wiretapping purposes.
Drain the swamp! https://t.co/SiTKenR4XE
— Gladden Pappin (@gjpappin) March 23, 2026
Gladden Pappin, president of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, responded on X with harsh words against U.S. support for Hungarian media. “Shameful but not surprising to see what USAID-funded “journalism” actually did in central Europe. The most notable ‘investigative’ journalist on the left in Hungary doxxed private government phones to foreign intel services for wiretapping purposes. Drain the swamp!” he wrote.
Via Mandiner, MTI; Featured image: Facebook/Szijjártó Péter
The post Opposition Journalist and Péter Magyar’s Close Ally in Hot Water over Phone Hacking Scandal appeared first on Hungary Today.
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