Hungary detains former communist minister

BUDAPEST - The Associated Press

Attorney General of Budapest Tibor Ibolya (R) and the prosecutor who leads the investigation Gabor Hetenyi (L) arrive at the press conference following the arrest of alleged Nazi war criminal Laszlo Csatary in Budapest, Hungary, 18 July 2012. EPA photo

Hungarian prosecutors say a former communist interior minister has been taken into custody, suspected of war crimes for involvement in the mass shootings of dozens of civilians after the country’s 1956 uprising.
 
Acting Budapest Chief Prosecutor Tibor Ibolya said Monday that authorities have asked for 90-year-old Bela Biszku to be placed under house arrest.
 
Biszku was an official under the leadership of Janos Kadar, who came to power after the October 1956 uprising was crushed in a few days by Soviet forces.
 
Prosecutors say Biszku is the only surviving member of the communist party’s interim executive committee, which is considered responsible for militias that fired indiscriminately into crowds at two separate rallies in December of 1956, killing 51 people.
 
If convicted, Biszku could face a life sentence.