Hungarian Camerawoman Petra Laszlo Fired For Tripping Refugees Is Now Suing Them And Facebook
Hungarian camerawoman Petra Laszlo, who was fired for tripping refugees, is now suing the fleeing individuals and Facebook. Laszlo apologized after video footage reportedly showing her kicking and tripping the refugees went viral online.
During an interview with Izvestia, a Russian media outlet, Petra Laszlo stated that she is planning on suing one of the Syrian refugees she was filmed kicking and social media giant Facebook. According to the Hungarian camerawoman, Facebook did not remove threatening and negative messages directed towards her and banned online groups established to voice support for her actions, MSN reports.
Laszlo is reportedly planning to sue Osama Abdul Mohsen. He is a 52-year-old Syrian refugee who fell on top of his child after the Hungarian camerawoman tripped him. Mohsen is now reportedly working in Spain at a national soccer coaching academy, Mashable reports.
“He [Osama Abdul Mohsen] changed his testimony, because he initially blamed the police,” Laszlo said. “My husband wants to prove my innocence.”
Hungarian journalist fired after caught on video tripping, kicking refugees https://t.co/sAhCyBB1Re via @HuffPostCanada
— Terry Alan McCracken (@TerryMcCracken) October 21, 2015
Hungarian broadcaster N1TV fired Laszlo and deemed her actions unacceptable behavior. The media outlet reportedly favors having all refugees deported. Petra’s apology about tripping the Syrian refugees stated that “something snapped” in her during a moment of fear as the individuals were running towards her in a field.
The Hungarian camerawoman is now facing criminal charges because prosecutors believe feelings of racism were involved in the kicking and tripping incident. Laszlo has denied that racism played a role in the now-viral physical altercation.
Once that case is wrapped up, Laszlo said she plans to file the dual suits as “a matter of honor.” She accused Mohsen of swapping stories, an act that she claims led to the intense backlash against her.
Hungarian camera woman plans to sue the man she tripped because apparently it’s his fault that her honor is violated https://t.co/0Vpb3dmqFS
— Iben Cecilie (@Hybennn) October 21, 2015
The kicking and tripping of refugees occurred near the Hungarian border town of Röszke on September 8. Refugees reportedly pushed their way through a law enforcement barricade and ran past journalists wielding cameras. The refugees, the majority of whom were reportedly from Syria, wanted to move through Hungary and into Western Europe.
A journalist standing near Petra Laszlo filmed her tripping Mohsen as he ran towards her with his young son in his arms. The man and boy did not appear to get injured when the father fell to the ground, and the child tumbled slightly past him in the grass.
Another video of the Hungarian camerawoman appears to show her kicking two other refugees, one of which was a child. Laszlo continued to keep her camera rolling as she swung out her leg and either kicked or tripped Mohsen. A police officer reportedly heard the refugee shouting “Baby, baby, baby” in an apparent effort to alert the woman that he was carrying a child.
The nearby police officer also appears to be attempting to grab a hold of Mohsen’s arm to stop him from running further into the country just before the camerawoman raised her leg to trip him. Before the clip of Laszlo tripping the refugee, multiple police officers can be seen attempting to stop and chase the multitude of individuals running through the field.
— Redmiles-Blog (@Redmiles_Blog) October 21, 2015
Laszlo said her family might move to Russia because they are frequently threatened and are afraid to go outside.
“We consider Russia and we think that we will begin to learn Russian,” Laszlo said during an interview with Izvestia. “For us it is important to leave Hungary. We will decide after the trial.”
[Image via Istvan Csak/Shutterstock.com]
