Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, a 49-year-old Hungarian-Italian businesswoman has found herself at the centre of international headlines due to her role as CEO of BAC Consulting, a company linked to a controversial incident involving exploding pagers across Lebanon resulting in the death of atleast 37 people including Hezbollah militants and over 3,000 injuries.
Reports indicate that her company licensed the design for the pagers from their original Taiwanese manufacturer Gold Apollo. However, in a brief interview with NBC News Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono has denied any direct involvement in the manufacture of the pagers stating that, “I am just the intermediate. I think you got it wrong.”
Speaking to the news agency Associated Press (AP), Cristiana’s mother, Beatrix Bársony-Arcidiacono claimed that her daughter was “not involved” in the deadly scheme to turn the pagers into explosives, asserting that she was just a broker. She further stated that the items did not pass through Budapest and the pagers were not produced in Hungary.
On Wednesday, the Hungarian government also issued an explanation stating that BAC Consulting was a “trading-intermediary company” with no manufacturing facility in Hungary, asserting that the pagers had never been in the country.
According to the reports, Cristiana has not been seen in public since the incident unfolded. Reuters reported that she has not responded to their calls and emails. Upon reaching her residency in downtown Budapest they noticed that her flat was shuttered after previously having an open vestibule door earlier in the week.
Cristiana’s mother claimed that her daughter is currently in a safe place protected by the Hungaria Secret Services. However, Hungary’s Special Service for National Security denied it, stating that Cristiana does not qualify for such protection. They added that she has been interviewed “several times” since the investigation began on Wednesday.
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Details about Cristiana
Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono grew up in Italy’s Catania and attended school nearby there. She obtained her PhD in particle physics from University College London. Cristiana’s dissertation was on the sub-atomic particle positron.
She has contributed to different sectors, including humanitarian aid in Africa and claims of her role in scientific and international groups. However, various allegations about her senior titles, such as her role as a project manager at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and as a board member of New York’s Earth Child Institute, have been debunked. The IAEA claimed that she was just an intern, and the Earth Child Institute announced she had no official position there.
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