Girl whose agency was linked to the exploding pagers is underneath Hungarian safety, her mom says

ROME (AP) — The girl whose company was linked to hundreds of pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria this week is underneath the safety of the Hungarian secret providers, her mom advised The Related Press on Friday.

Cristiana Bársony-Arcidiacono has not appeared publicly for the reason that lethal simultaneous attack that focused Hezbollah on Tuesday and that has been extensively blamed on Israel. She is listed because the CEO of Budapest-based BAC Consulting, which the Taiwanese trademark holder of the pagers mentioned was liable for the manufacture of the units.

Her mom, Beatrix Bársony-Arcidiacono, advised the AP that her daughter had acquired unspecified threats and “is at the moment in a protected place protected by the Hungarian secret providers.”

The “Hungarian secret providers suggested her to not discuss to media,” she mentioned by telephone from Sicily.

Hungary’s nationwide safety authorities didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark, and the AP couldn’t independently confirm the declare.

Two days of attacks this week, first focusing on pagers after which walkie-talkies, have killed at least 37 people and wounded greater than 3,000, together with civilians. Hezbollah and the Lebanese authorities have blamed Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied involvement.

Cristiana Bársony-Arcidiacono’s firm got here underneath scrutiny after Gold Apollo, a Taiwanese agency, mentioned it had approved BAC Consulting to make use of its title on the pagers that had been used within the first assault, however that the Hungarian firm was liable for manufacturing and design.

On Wednesday, a Hungarian authorities spokesman mentioned the pagers delivered to Hezbollah had been by no means in Hungary, and that BAC Consulting merely acted as an middleman.

Beatrix Bársony-Arcidiacono, who additionally makes use of the title Beatrice, echoed that.

“She is just not concerned in any manner, she was only a dealer. The objects didn’t move by way of Budapest. … They weren’t produced in Hungary,” she mentioned.

BAC Consulting shares the bottom flooring of a modest constructing in Budapest with quite a few different enterprises, however has no bodily places of work and makes use of the property in Hungary’s capital — like the opposite corporations primarily based there — solely as an official deal with, based on a lady who emerged from the constructing earlier this week and refused to be named.

The corporate’s web site mentioned it specialised in “setting, growth, and worldwide affairs.” The company registry listed 118 official features together with sugar and oil manufacturing, retail jewellery gross sales and pure gasoline extraction.

It introduced in $725,000 in income in 2022 and $593,000 in 2023, based on the corporate registry. Final 12 months, the corporate spent almost $324,000, or round 55% of its income, on “tools.”

The corporate’s web site has been unavailable since Wednesday.

Beatrix Bársony-Arcidiacono mentioned her daughter was born in Sicily and studied on the College of Catania there earlier than pursuing a Ph.D. in London. She labored in Paris and Vienna earlier than transferring to Budapest in October 2016 to take care of her aged grandmother.

In Might 2022, she included the corporate on the coronary heart of the thriller of the pagers.

On social media, the youthful Bársony-Arcidiacono describes herself as a strategic adviser and enterprise developer with a doctorate who has labored for main worldwide organizations such because the Worldwide Atomic Vitality Company and the CARE humanitarian company, in addition to for enterprise capital corporations.

The 49-year-old acquired her Ph.D. from College School London, the place she was enrolled within the early to mid-2000s, based on her LinkedIn web page. There, she labored with Ákos Kövér, a Hungarian physicist and now-retired professor, who confirmed her enrollment.

Kövér mentioned of Bársony-Arcidiacono in an electronic mail to the AP: “On the time, we additionally revealed some joint articles. I’m not conscious of her different actions, so far as i do know she has not performed any scientific work since then.”

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Spike reported from Budapest, Hungary. El Deeb reported from Beirut.