A far-right Polish MP has been accused of antisemitism after he used a fire extinguisher to put out Hanukkah candles displayed in Parliament.
Grzegorz Braun, leader of the far-right Confederation of the Polish Crown, was seen in a video removing a fire extinguisher from the wall before approaching the candles and putting them out on Tuesday.
The candles were lit for annual Hanukkah celebrations where members of the Jewish community had gathered at parliament.
Mr Braun described Hanukkah as “satanic” and said he was restoring “normality".
When he was asked if he was ashamed of his actions, he added: “Those who take part in acts of satanic worship should be ashamed."
The MP was expelled from Tuesday's parliament session in Warsaw and will reportedly lose part of his salary for three months.
A member of the Jewish community, Magdalena Gudzinska-Adamczyk, told TVN24: “I feel very short of breath and have trouble speaking.
"I have stopped feeling safe in this country."
The incident occurred as members of the lower house, Sejm, were debating on whether to approve the incoming prime minister Donald Tusk.
Sejm speaker, Szymon Holownia, excluded the MP from proceedings on Tuesday.
He called Mr Braun’s behaviour “scandalous” and said he would inform prosecutors of his actions.
Outside he told reporters: “After determining the precise nature of Mr Braun’s actions on the basis of recordings, an application against him will be submitted to the prosecutor’s office.”
"There will be no tolerance for racism, xenophobia, antisemitism ... as long as I am the speaker of parliament."
He added that Mr Braun will lose half his salary for three months and parliamentary expenses for six months.
This is not the first time the MP has been accused of antisemitism. In June, he disrupted a lecture on the history of the holocaust in Poland after he stormed the podium.
Mr Braun's party condemned his actions on Tuesday in a social media post.
The party's co-leader, SÅawomir Mentzen, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “I condemn the actions of Grzegorz Braun. In the near future I’ll take further steps in this matter.”
Poland’s Chief Rabbi Michael Schudrich said he was embarrassed by Mr Braun’s actions and that they were not representative of the country.
He said: “For thousands of years our enemies have been trying to extinguish us, from the time of the Maccabees right through to Hamas. But our enemies should learn, they cannot extinguish us."
