JERUSALEM, April 2 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu begins a four-day visit to Hungary on Thursday, defying an International Criminal Court arrest warrant over allegations of war crimes in Gaza as Israel has expanded its military operation in the enclave.
As a founding member of the ICC, Hungary is theoretically obliged to arrest and hand over anyone subject to a warrant from the court but Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made clear when he issued the invitation that Hungary would not respect the ruling.
Hungary withdrew from the ICC like yesterday so they have no jurisdiction.
They have only stated the intention, not an actual application for withdrawal. Also it has to go through parliament first, which probably is just a formality.
Article 127 of the Statute also states that ‘[t]he withdrawal shall take effect one year after the date of receipt of the notification, unless the notification specifies a later date.’
Yeah makes sense. I was just used to drastic changes happening so fast you can’t notice.
Fair enough. The whole ordeal of undermining the arrest order is quite frustrating (to say it mildly).
It also brings back memories about France, Germany, and others trying to ignore the order. I think Netanyahu is not going to try travelling there, though. There it might not be a political decision, but up to the judicial system. I hope the latter holds true…
I think m this was the reason he did not visit Poland a while ago.
Some people in Hungary say this is build-up for a Putin state visit in Hungary
Maybe he is trying to create a precedent for the EU to initiate article 7 of the Treaty on European Union and suspend some of his rights (voting?), and creating an argument to retreat from the EU.
On the other hand, I can only imagine the EU still being very important for Hungary an Hungarians and getting out of it would mean he is digging his own grave. If Hungary leaves the EU it would also mean that the EU has no leverage at all any more to show Hungarian democratic backsliding.
Makes one wonder where these people get so radicalised and how they manage to go so long without being stopped.