Hungarian prosecutors raid Fidesz data centre in fund probe

In a significant escalation of Hungary's ongoing anti-corruption drive, authorities on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, raided a data center in Budapest hosting the servers of the opposition Fidesz party, led by former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The operation was conducted as part of a criminal investigation into the alleged misuse of a state cultural fund.

Prosecutors from the Bács-Kiskun County Chief Prosecutor’s Office, assisted by the National Tax and Customs Administration, executed the raid without prior notice. A spokesperson for the prosecutors' office stated the action was linked to an investigation into suspected embezzlement and other offenses concerning Hungary's National Cultural Fund during the previous Fidesz administration. Officials allege that a decision-making body within the fund improperly approved 1,079 grants totaling more than 17 billion forints, equivalent to roughly $47 million, in violation of rules.

Fidesz issued a statement on Facebook condemning the raid, claiming investigators intended to seize the party's "entire communications system and databases." The party described the operation as unprecedented since the end of communism in 1990 and accused the...