Amnesty International calls on Hungary to arrest Netanyahu amid planned visit
London: Amnesty International has urged Hungary to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his scheduled visit to the country on Wednesday. Netanyahu is set to meet Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has stated that Hungary will not enforce the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant against him.
The ICC issued a warrant for Netanyahu in November over alleged war crimes in Gaza. As an EU member state, Hungary is legally obligated to uphold ICC warrants, but Orban has refused to comply.
Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s head of global research, advocacy, and policy, said Netanyahu is accused of serious war crimes, including using starvation as a weapon, targeting civilians, and committing crimes against humanity such as murder and persecution.
The rights group warned that Netanyahu’s visit to an ICC member state without arrest would encourage further Israeli violations against Palestinians. It described his trip as a deliberate effort to undermine the ICC and an insult to victims seeking justice.
Amnesty International criticized Hungary’s stance, stating that allowing Netanyahu’s visit signals a disregard for international law. Guevara-Rosas urged European and global leaders to take action, warning that inaction would mock the suffering of Palestinian victims.
The organization also called on the ICC Prosecutor to pursue legal action against all of Israel’s alleged crimes and emphasized that leaders accused of war crimes must not enjoy impunity.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
