Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, called on member states to withdraw from the Court, following Hungary's lead.

This came during a joint press conference held by Netanyahu on Thursday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Budapest, following the latter's announcement of his country's decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court.

Addressing his Hungarian counterpart, Netanyahu said, "You proudly support Israel and stand with us in international institutions. You have taken a clear moral stand on the International Criminal Court, and I call on other countries to follow your example and withdraw from the ICC," he said.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation quoted the Hungarian Prime Minister as saying that he decided to withdraw from the International Criminal Court "because it has become politicized, and the decisions made regarding Israel clearly demonstrate this."

Orbán claimed, "The court has become a cheap political tool, and we don't want to participate in it. The foreign minister will submit a bill to parliament, and we will leave the court."

For its part, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Hungarian Prime Minister's reception of his Israeli counterpart was "a disregard for international justice and law."

In a statement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry expressed its disapproval of the press conference between the Hungarian Prime Minister and the occupying state's disregard for the war of genocide, displacement, and annexation, as well as the rights of the Palestinian people, which enjoy international consensus.

She considered that "this disregard constitutes a serious setback in international relations."

Hamas also condemned "in the strongest terms the Hungarian government's announcement of its withdrawal from the International Criminal Court, coinciding with the visit of war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the court for the heinous crimes committed by his fascist army against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip."

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévost said Hungary's withdrawal from the ICC was "regrettable and a setback for international justice and the fight against impunity for the most serious crimes."

Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock described Hungary's decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court as "a bad day for international criminal law."

"I have repeatedly stated clearly that no one in Europe is above the law, and that this applies to all areas of the law," Baerbock added.

Netanyahu arrived in Hungary early Thursday morning for a visit that will last until Saturday evening.

Hungary has become the first country in the world to refuse to implement the International Criminal Court's decision to arrest Netanyahu.

Netanyahu decided to travel to Hungary at the invitation of its prime minister, who pledged not to implement the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant.

Netanyahu is subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court on November 21, 2024, when the court's judges ordered his arrest and that of his then-Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Gaza Strip, dating back to at least October 8, 2023.

These crimes include starvation of civilians, directing deliberate attacks against the civilian population, murder, and persecution.

The court lacks the police force to enforce its ruling, but its 124 member states are legally obligated to arrest Netanyahu and Galant if they enter their territories and hand them over to the court for legal action against them, in light of the ongoing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, with US support.

Since the arrest warrant was issued, Netanyahu has only left for the United States, which is not a member state of the court.

The Rome Statute was adopted in the Italian capital in 1998 and entered into force in 2002.

This system is the cornerstone of the establishment of the International Criminal Court as the first permanent international judicial body competent to hold accountable those responsible for gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.