On April 14, Konrad Berkowicz, a member of Poland’s parliament from the far-right Confederation coalition, took the floor in the Sejm carrying an Israeli flag on which the Star of David had been replaced with a Nazi swastika. The session was broadcast live on parliament’s official YouTube channel.
Speaking from the podium, Berkowicz accused Israel of genocide against Palestinians and Lebanese people, of using banned phosphorus bombs against civilians, and said Israeli strikes on Iran had hit Poles’ own wallets—through higher fuel prices. “Israel is committing genocide before our eyes with particular cruelty. Israel is the new Third Reich, and its flag should look exactly like this,” he said, displaying the altered flag.
The chamber’s reaction was split: some lawmakers shouted, “This is outrageous! Sit down!” while others greeted the speech with applause.
Sejm Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty immediately condemned the incident. “Displaying a swastika in the Polish Sejm cannot be justified in any way,” he said, promising to prepare a proposal to sanction the lawmaker. Parliament’s legal service began reviewing Berkowicz’s actions for two possible offences: the public desecration of a foreign flag and the promotion of Nazi symbols. A police complaint has already been filed; Sławomir Ćwik, an MP from the Centre caucus, called for the transcript to be sent to prosecutors so they could open a case under Article 256 of the Criminal Code—in Poland, displaying Nazi symbols is a criminal offence.
Israel has rejected accusations that it used white phosphorus against civilians. Earlier accounts had suggested such weapons were used only as a smokescreen during fighting with Hamas.
The incident took place on a symbolically charged day: April 14 was when Israel marked Yom HaShoah—the day of remembrance for the victims of the Holocaust.
Berkowicz himself has been at the center of controversy before. In October 2025, Polish media reported that he had been detained at an IKEA store in Kraków on suspicion of stealing kitchen utensils.