The attack by a right-wing extremist MP on a Hanukkah menorah in the Warsaw parliament caused horror beyond Poland. Religious leaders, Holocaust survivors and politicians condemned the anti-Semitic act.
The anti-Semitic attack by a right-wing extremist member of the Polish parliament has caused outrage beyond Poland. In the incident on Tuesday, Grzegorz Braun, a member of the opposition Federate faction, used a fire extinguisher to extinguish the candles of the Hanukkah menorah that were burning in the House of Commons on the occasion of the Jewish Festival of Lights.
The European Rabbinical Conference condemned the act as a demonstration of “incitement and anti-Semitism at the highest level.” The president of the Munich-based organization, Pinchas Goldschmidt, called it “very worrying” that even the Polish parliament could not protect the dignity and security of the Jewish community.
Cardinal Rys apologizes
The Catholic Church also reacted with dismay to the attack. Cardinal Grzegorz Rys said on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that Braun had said he was not ashamed of what he had done. Rys emphasized that “I am ashamed and apologize to the entire Jewish community in Poland.” The cardinal is responsible for dialogue with Judaism in the Polish Bishops’ Conference.
Horror among Holocaust survivors
The International Auschwitz Committee said that Holocaust survivors around the world were horrified by the “anti-Semitic hatred and fascist destructiveness” revealed by Sejm MP Braun in the Polish parliament. The Executive Vice President of the Auschwitz Committee, Christoph Heubner, said they were affected and concerned about the entry of “fascists as elected members of the Polish Parliament.” The incident in Warsaw also shows “how the hatred of anti-Semitism has now regained a foothold in Europe.”
Tusk calls Braun’s behavior “a disgrace”
The incident occurred during the debate on the government program of the new Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The right-wing liberal head of government called Braun’s act a “disgrace.”
After the scandal, the Presidium of the House of Representatives met for an emergency meeting and excluded Braun from the current parliamentary session. All factions except the Confederacy strongly condemned the attack.