The president of Hungary has resigned live on television over a decision to pardon a man convicted of covering up a child sexual abuse case.
It was revealed last week President Katalin Novak had given clemency to a man jailed for forcing children to retract sexual abuse claims against a director of a state-run children’s home.
Protests calling for her to step down had been growing in Hungary.
Ms Novak apologised and said she made “a mistake” in granting the pardon.
Judit Varga, the former minister of justice who approved the pardon, has also resigned from her new role leading the European elections campaign for Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling Fidesz party.
The controversy which led to the resignations came after the names of 25 people pardoned by Ms Novak in April last year, as part of a visit to Hungary by Pope Francis, were made public by Hungarian media last week.
On the list of convicts was the deputy director of a children’s home near Budapest, who had been jailed for three years after forcing children to retract claims of abuse against the director of the home.
The director had himself been jailed for eight years over abusing children at the government-run facility.
Hungarian opposition parties and protesters had been demanding her resignation, but Ms Novak’s decision to do so was as sudden as it was unexpected.
Ms Novak is a popular figure in Fidesz and a rare female politician in a male-dominated country. She is a key ally of Hungarian Mr Orban and previously worked as his family minister.
In 2022, she became the first woman to hold the largely ceremonial role of Hungarian president.
