Far-right Polish lawmaker Konrad Berkowicz sparked outrage Tuesday by calling Israel the “new Third Reich” and displaying an altered Israeli flag bearing a swastika during a speech in parliament.
Israel slammed his actions as “antisemitic horror.”
Speaking hours before the annual March of the Living at Auschwitz-Birkenau, Berkowicz alleged that Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza and repeated unverified claims about the use of phosphorus munitions against civilians.
“Israel is in the process of committing a genocide of exceptional cruelty before our very eyes,” Berkowicz told lawmakers, comparing the country to a “new Third Reich.”
He also compared the number of children killed in Gaza to the war in Ukraine and described graphic scenes of suffering.
Berkowicz, a member of the far-right nationalist Konfederacja (Confederation) opposition party, then brandished a paper flag, with the Nazi symbol replacing the Star of David at its center.
It’s real. This happened. On Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Polish MP Konrad Berkowicz compares Israel’s defensive war to the Third Reich and displays an Israeli flag with a swastika.
First of all, this dude’s parents were 100% Nazis. Not even a question. He even looks and sounds… pic.twitter.com/dRcOFwWIaw
— Hillel Fuld (@HilzFuld) April 14, 2026
Parliamentarians reacted with outrage, in a country that was the site of many of the concentration camps built by Nazi Germany during the Holocaust, in which six million European Jews were killed.
Berkowicz’s actions prompted shouts of anger in the chamber, while the parliament speaker called the display of the swastika “unjustified.”
The speaker later announced he was preparing a motion to impose penalties on Berkowicz for “presenting Nazi symbols in the chamber.”
Other MPs immediately protested, with Deputy Speaker Wlodzimierz Czarzasty saying that showing a swastika in the Polish parliament is “in no way justified.”
Another MP, Slawomir Cwik, called for the case to be referred to prosecutors, citing Polish laws that criminalize the promotion of Nazi symbols or incitement to hatred.
The Israeli embassy in Poland condemned Berkowicz’s actions, calling them an “antisemitic horror” and demanding Polish authorities “act upon this disgrace.”
The incident came on the same day the annual March of the Living, held on the grounds of the Auschwitz concentration camp to commemorate Holocaust victims, took place.
Auschwitz was the largest of the extermination camps built by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland and has become a symbol of the Holocaust.
“As Holocaust Survivors march in Auschwitz today, this vile anti-Jewish act is especially appalling,” the Israeli embassy wrote in a statement on X.
Berkowicz’s actions prompted an immediate reaction from the United States ambassador to Poland, himself a follower of Orthodox Judaism.
“SHAME SHAME SHAME on YOU!! Maybe even you have noticed that we Jews aren’t so easy to push around anymore, are we?” Ambassador Tom Rose wrote on his personal X account.
“We stand with our friends and we know how to fight and defeat our enemies!!!” he added.
Earlier Tuesday, Rose had also participated in the March of the Living.
One million Jews and more than 100,000 non-Jews died at Auschwitz between 1940 and 1945.
Berkowicz has previously faced criticism over controversial and antisemitic remarks, including repeatedly accusing Israel of “murder” in social media posts in recent years.
Source:
www.timesofisrael.com
