Hungary's Incoming PM Vows to Arrest Netanyahu if He Visits

Hungary’s Prime Minister-elect, Peter Magyar, has stated that his country must arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he enters Hungarian territory. Netanyahu is the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) related to the Gaza war. The ICC issued an arrest warrant against Netanyahu in November 2024 on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip. ICC member states are in principle obliged to detain individuals subject to such arrest warrants. Hungary previously refused to arrest Netanyahu during his visit to the capital Budapest in April 2025, when Viktor Orban, a staunch ally of Netanyahu, was still Prime Minister. Before the meeting with Netanyahu, Orban announced Hungary’s withdrawal from the ICC, a process that takes one year to take effect under the ICC Statute, and guaranteed immunity for Netanyahu. Magyar, who defeated Orban in the election on 12 April and will be sworn in as Hungary’s new Prime Minister in early May, as reported by Politico on Tuesday (21/4/2026), has announced that he will halt the ICC membership withdrawal process on 2 June. That date marks one year since Hungary officially announced the withdrawal to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. When asked by reporters what that step means for Netanyahu’s scheduled visit this autumn – the Israeli Prime Minister has accepted an invitation from Hungary – Magyar gave a firm response. “I have explained this to the Israeli Prime Minister as well … the Tisza government (the party led by Magyar) has a strong intention to stop this and ensure that Hungary remains an ICC member,” Magyar told reporters on Monday (20/4) local time. He then affirmed: “If a country is an ICC member and someone wanted by the ICC enters our territory, that person must be detained.” Despite Magyar’s affirmation, some countries argue that they can remain ICC members without executing the arrest warrant. One of them is France, which argues that arresting Netanyahu would violate other agreements it has with Israel. Article 98 of the ICC Statute supports France’s reasoning, stating that a state may not “act inconsistently with its obligations under international law with respect to … the diplomatic immunity of a person”. Former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in April 2025 that he could not imagine his country arresting Netanyahu. Italy also granted immunity to the Israeli Prime Minister.