Fifty U.S. congressmen urged Hungarian leaders to “use their authority to speak out against anti-Semitism.”

Their call came in an open letter dated June 22 addressed to Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban. The letter focused on “anti-Semitic and homophobic positions espoused by members of the Jobbik Party.” Jobbik, a nationalist extreme-right movement, is the country’s third largest political party.

Among other issues of concern, the letter mentioned statements by Jobbik’s presidential candidate, Krisztina Morvai, who called Israelis “lice-infested, dirty murderers.”

Such positions “have no place in civilized discourse and must not be allowed to go unchallenged,” the letter read. The initiative was led by Joseph Crowley (D-N.Y.). — jta