Budapest, November 28th, 2024 – Less than one week after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes in Gaza, ECI’s Founding Director Tomas Sandell met with high level representatives of the Hungarian EU Presidency in Budapest to thank the government for its consistent and steadfast support of the Jewish state.
Immediately after the arrest warrant was issued on Thursday 21st November, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who is currently holding the rotating presidency of the EU, invited Netanyahu to Budapest assuring him that under no circumstances would he be arrested on Hungarian soil.
On Tuesday Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani explained that the arrest warrant had only theoretical significance and that it was highly unlikely that Netanyahu would be arrested anywhere in Europe. On Wednesday the French government made the same assessment, pointing out the inconsistency in arresting a leader of a nation which is not party of the ICC. The government statement pointed out that both France and Israel are democracies committed to the rule of law and with a respect for an independent justice system. Earlier in the week also the German government clarified that for historical reasons there would be no arrest of an Israeli prime minister within the German jurisdiction. Thus with three of the leading EU member states dismissing the arrest warrant and the incoming US administration threatening to target the ICC with sanctions, the ICC decision will have little if any effect.
Nevertheless, outgoing EU High Representative Josep Borrell insisted on Tuesday that the arrest warrant is valid and that each EU member state is obliged to carry out the arrest. So far only minor Western countries like Ireland and Norway (a non-EU member) have committed to arresting the Israeli leader. Both countries are also actively campaigning for Palestinian statehood.
Meeting the Hungarian State Secretary for Security Péter Sztáray in Budapest on Thursday, Sandell noted that “it is a dark day in European history when Israel has to send military aircrafts to Europe to evacuate its citizens, as was the case in Amsterdam three weeks ago, and the EU High Representative threatens to arrest Israel’s democratically elected Prime Minister only one year after the modern Jewish state has experienced the deadliest pogrom in its history.”
Sandell thanked the State Secretary for the courageous stance of the Hungarian government in being the first EU member state to call the arrest warrant a bluff, soon to be followed by major EU member states like Germany, France and Italy.
The Hungarian EU presidency will come to a close on December 31 and will be followed by the Polish EU presidency on January 1, 2025.
