Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu touched down in Hungary overnight, stepping out for the first time into a country that recognizes the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, which issued a warrant for his arrest last year.
The possibility of his arrest seemed distant, however, after Hungary's right-wing prime minister, Viktor Orbán, a well-known supporter of Israel, vowed to defy the court's directive shortly after it was issued in November. Video showed Orbán welcoming Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, to the capital, Budapest, on Thursday.
Hungarian officials signaled Thursday that the country may withdraw from the ICC, which accused Netanyahu and his former defense minister Yoav Gallant of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.
As the conflict nears its 18th month, Israel has ramped up its operations in the enclave, and Netanyahu announced Wednesday night that the Israeli military had begun “seizing territory” across the strip.
He added that his country plans to establish the “Morag” corridor, which he said would be similar to the Philadelphi security corridor, which cuts across Gaza's southern border with Egypt.
“We are now cutting off the Strip and we are increasing the pressure step by step, so that they will give us our hostages,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “And the more they do not give, the more the pressure will increase.”
