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This is reported by Ukrinform with reference to the Austrian agency APA.
"The National Council lifted immunity from FPÖ leader Herbert Kikl, as well as MPs Martin Graf, Harald Stefan and Norbert Nemeth. All parties, except for the Freedom Party itself, voted "for" late on Wednesday, the message reads.
It is noted that the removal of parliamentary immunity from the leader of the Freedom Party and three more of its members took place in view of the relevant request of the Austrian Prosecutor's Office for Economic and Corruption Crimes (WKStA). She suspects Kikl of giving false testimony to the parliamentary commission. Three other FPÖ MPs face charges of breaching a law banning the Nazi party after they performed a Nazi-related song.
Despite the victory of the far-right party, on October 22, Federal President Alexander van der Bellen instructed the current chancellor and head of the ÖVP, Karl Neghammer, to form a coalition government. This is due to the fact that the Austrian Freedom Party could not find a partner for cooperation. The ÖVP excluded interaction with the FPÖ under the leadership of Kikl, and the SPÖ, NEOS and the Greens did not want to cooperate with it in principle.
Photo: dpa
