Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced his intention to leave the court’s jurisdiction last month as he welcomed Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyhu to Hungary.
The Hungarian Parliament approved a bill on May 20 that will begin the country’s year-long withdrawal process from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government announced the move in April, shortly after his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, visited Hungary in defiance of an ICC arrest warrant.
Last month, Orbán said the ICC was “no longer an impartial court, a rule-of-law court, but rather a political court.”
He also rejected the idea of arresting Netanyahu and said the ICC’s ruling was “brazen, cynical and completely unacceptable.”
On Tuesday, 134 lawmakers voted in favor of the bill to withdraw Hungary from the ICC, and 37 voted against it.
“Hungary firmly rejects the use of international organizations—especially criminal courts—as political tools,” the bill stated.
The court, based in The Hague, Netherlands, alleged they used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and intentionally targeted civilians. Israeli officials deny the charges.
Israel says the court has lost legitimacy by issuing warrants against a democratically elected leader of a country exercising the right of self-defense. It says the charges are politically motivated and fueled by anti-Semitism.
A country’s withdrawal from the court takes effect one year after the U.N. secretary-general receives written notification of the move.
Established in 1998 by the Rome Statute, the ICC was meant to provide judicial services when no other options were available.
It began operations in 2002 to prosecute those accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, with Hungary as one of the founding members.
All European Union member states are among the 124 nations that are members of the ICC, meaning they are required to enforce warrants issued by the court as per the Rome Statute. The disputed “State of Palestine“ is also a member.
Major countries that are not members of the ICC include the United States, China, Russia, Israel, India, Pakistan, Turkey, and Iran.
Hungary’s withdrawal is not the only action that has been taken against the court.
By Guy Birchall
