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Hungary is pulling out from the International Criminal Court (ICC), a decision made shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Hungary on Thursday to meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Netanyahu, who faces an ICC warrant for alleged war crimes in Gaza, was welcomed at the airport by an honor guard, Hungarian Minister of Defense Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, and Israeli Ambassador to Hungary Maya Kadosh, alongside his wife.
He is expected to be in Hungary for four days.
As a founding member of the ICC, Hungary is tasked with arresting individuals wanted by the court and handing them over. However, Orban has criticized the warrant for Netanyahu as “brazen, cynical and completely unacceptable.”
Hungary’s parliament will likely approve the bill to begin the year-long withdrawal process from the ICC since it is controlled by Orban’s Fidesz Party, according to Reuters.
Orban has strongly supported Netanyahu over the years and, in the past, has been quick to block EU statements or actions criticizing Israel.
Israel has rejected the ICC’s accusations, which come after the Jewish State launched a war against Hamas following the terrorist group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack in southern Israel that left 1,200 dead and more than 250 taken as hostages.
When the court issued the warrant for Netanyahu and his former defense chief, Yoav Gallant, it said there was reason to believe both men participated in crimes including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza.
According to the Hamas-run Palestinian Ministry of Health, Israel has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians during its attack on Gaza.
Reuters contributed to this report.