'Disgrace': Far-right lawmaker douses menorah during Hanukkah gathering in Polish parliament

A far-right Polish lawmaker shocked the country's parliament on Tuesday when he interrupted a Hanukkah celebration and doused the candles on a menorah.

Grzegorz Braun, a pro-Russian member of Poland's lower chamber of parliament – the Sejm – filled the parliament lobby with spray from a fire extinguisher that he used to put out the candles.

Braun delivered anti-Semitic remarks on the floor of the Sejm shortly after the attack. Braun, a member of the Confederation party, has previously said there's a plot to make Poland a Jewish state and that homosexuality should be criminalized, according to The Associated Press.

Fallout from Grzegorz Braun's extinguishing a menorah

Szymon Holownia, the speaker of the parliament, expelled Braun from the day's session, referred him to prosecutors, docked him half of his salary for three months and stripped the member of his expenses for six months.

"There will be no tolerance for racism, xenophobia, antisemitism ... as long as I am the speaker of parliament," Holownia told reporters after the attack, according to Reuters.

"Poland is home to all religions," he said, AP reported.

The candles on the menorah were relit after the attack, which comes on the heels of the appointment of Donald Tusk as the nation's prime minister. The appointment ends the eight-year rule of the Polish nationalist Law and Justice party.

Tusk called the attack a, "disgrace" and said: "This is unacceptable. This can’t happen again."

International reaction

Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś of the Polish Catholic church condemned the representative's actions in a statement saying, "(I) apologize to the entire Jewish community in Poland."

Translated via Google Translate: Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś: "In connection with the event in the Sejm that was committed by MP Grzegorz Braun, who extinguished the Hanukkah candles and stated that he was not ashamed of what he had done, I declare that I am ashamed and apologize to the entire Jewish community in Poland."

U.S. Ambassador to Poland condemned the attack, saying on X: "The United States stands against anti-Semitism and this outrageous act must be condemned in the strongest possible terms."

Translated via Google Translate: "I am outraged by the nasty anti-Semitic act committed today by one of the Polish members of parliament. The United States stands against anti-Semitism and this outrageous act must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Poland has experienced the atrocities of the Holocaust throughout its history, and this disgusting act of hatred reminds us all why we must remain vigilant and fight anti-Semitism every minute of every day."

Israel's ambassador to Poland Yacov Livne reposted video of the event on X saying, "SHAME."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Polish lawmaker Grzegorz Braun douses menorah at Hanukkah celebration