At the United Nations Summit on Refugees and Migrants underway in New York, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó called attention to the fact that the Islamic State terrorist organisation represents a civilizational threat to Christian communities.

“The terrorist organisation’s crimes against Christians cannot remain unpunished”, the Minister told Hungarian news agency MTI, adding that he had explained this Hungarian standpoint at the panel discussion organised within the framework of the Summit on Thursday, and which also discussed bringing the Islamic State to justice for its crimes.

Hungary’s chief diplomat also informed the other foreign ministers attending the event that he had personally written a letter to the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court concerning the matter but had yet to receive a reply. “For this reason, Hungary is taking the matter to the UN Security Council”, Mr. Szijjártó said.

The initiative to bring the Islamic State to justice for its crimes was put forward at the international conference on refugees by Boris Johnson, Didier Reynders and Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the Foreign Ministers of the United Kingdom, Belgium and Iraq, respectively. The Summit’s panel discussion on the subject was to all intents and purposes the launch of the international campaign to bring the Islamic State to justice.

In his speech, Mr. Szijjártó explained that Hungary rejects the atrocities committed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, and its systematic and mass contravention of human rights and international humanitarian rights. “We assign particular emphasis to the fight against modern-day slavery and to protecting religious and ethnic minorities and other endangered groups such as women and children”, the Hungarian Foreign Minister declared. According to Hungary’s standpoint, these crimes are aimed not only at the victims but also infringe on the interests of the entire international community and represent an attack on its values, while also posing a danger to international peace and security.

(MTI)