Hungary likely to withdraw from ICC during Netanyahu’s visit

Hungary is expected to announce during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit this week that it is withdrawing from the International Criminal Court, The Times of Israel has learned.

It will be Netanyahu’s first trip to Europe since the ICC last year issued an arrest warrant for him and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip, meaning that countries party to the Rome Statute — which include Hungary — would be obliged to take him into custody.

Netanyahu will meet tomorrow with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who in November rejected the ICC decision to seek Netanyahu’s arrest and invited him to make an official visit without the fear of being detained.

Neither Israel nor the United States are party to the court, and the warrant has no enforcement mechanism, with the ICC instead relying on cooperation from its member states. ICC member countries are required to act on the court’s arrest warrants but have not always done so.