Jewish men dance with a fire extinguisher in video poking fun at anti-Semitic Polish MP Grzegorz Braun who put out Hanukkah candles – as his supporters raise £14,000 after stunt triggered outrage
A Polish politician who angrily sprayed a fire extinguisher to extinguish Hanukkah candles in Poland's parliament building yesterday has been mercilessly mocked by the Jewish community in the city of Lodz.
In a video clip shared on social media, a group of Jewish men are seen cheerfully holding up a fire extinguisher and passing it to each other as they danced, laughed and made fun of Grzegorz Braun's stunt yesterday.
The atmosphere was jovial, with audience members clapping and moving along to traditional Jewish music, before one participant feigned outrage and jokingly threw the fire extinguisher at the camera.
The footage has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times amid outrage over Braun, who was widely criticized for the anti-Semitic act after he described Hanukkah as “satanic” and said he was restoring “normalcy” by snuffing out the candles.
The right-wing, pro-Russian member of the Polish Confederation Party was thrown out of the Polish Sejm after ripping the red fire extinguisher off the wall of the government building and blowing it up. menorah, filling the air with a persistent haze.
But supporters of the lawmaker jumped to his aid, with an online fundraiser raising more than £14,000 after the MP was ordered to pay six months' salary, plus another three months' half-salary, for his actions.
A lawyer representing Braun who organized the fundraiser posted on Twitter: “The Sejm is only allowed to use Polish symbols and is not a place of religious worship.”
In a video clip shared on social media, a group of Jewish men are seen cheerfully holding up a fire extinguisher and passing it to each other as they dance
The atmosphere was friendly and the spectators clapped and moved along to traditional Jewish music
Shocking footage shows Braun extinguishing candles on a menorah lit for Hanukkah as a persistent haze filled the air
Grzegorz Braun, a member of the far-right Confederation Party, is seen after using a fire extinguisher to extinguish candles on a menorah
Video shows Grzegorz Braun ripping the red fire extinguisher from the wall of the Polish Sejm building and marching towards the exhibition to celebrate the Jewish holiday
Seconds later, a female official desperately tries to grab the fire extinguisher from Braun's hands – only for the far-right MP to shoot her in the face with white power
a A female official who desperately tried to grab the fire extinguisher from Braun's hands had to receive medical attention after the lawmaker sprayed the fire extinguisher in her face, an action labeled “absolutely outrageous” by other lawmakers.
But when asked shortly after the incident if he was ashamed of his actions, Braun scathingly responded: “Those who participate in acts of satanic worship should be ashamed.”
Braun has claimed in the past that there is a plot to turn Poland into a “Jewish state.”
All major political forces quickly denounced Braun's stunt.
Shortly after Braun left the room, the candles were relit.
The speaker of parliament, Szymon Holownia, called the act “absolutely outrageous” and excluded him from the day's parliamentary proceedings. He said he had filed a report with prosecutors.
“This should never have happened,” Holownia said. 'Poland is home to all religions.
“There will be no tolerance for racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism… as long as I am speaker of parliament,” he added.
Rabbi Shalom Ber Stambler, who has led the Hanukkah ceremony for 17 years, said the celebration was peaceful and had just ended when chaos broke out.
“He did it in a very brutal way,” Stambler added, speaking of Braun.
He said it felt as if Braun wanted to disrupt a day when many people were rejoicing after Poland's new Prime Minister Donald Tusk gave his inaugural speech to parliament.
“Someone tried to destroy it,” Stambler said. 'And I think the impact is the opposite. Now there will be even more awareness of how much tolerance is needed, how important it is.'
The shocking footage shows Braun snuffing out the candles on a menorah lit for Hanukkah as a persistent haze filled the air
Braun is seen putting down the fire extinguisher after dousing the flames as shocked bystanders and security personnel gather around him.
Grzegorz Braun, far-right Polish MP from the Confederation Party, walks outside after using a fire extinguisher to extinguish Hanukkah candles
Security tried to move people away from the scene as powder filled the air
Israeli Ambassador to Poland Yacov Livne delivers a speech during Hanukkah celebrations in parliament on December 12, before the chaos unfolded
Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who was elected yesterday, called Braun's actions a disgrace and said such an incident should never be repeated.
New Prime Minister Donald Tusk called Braun's act a shame and said such an incident should never be repeated.
Tusk was elected on Monday and delivered his inaugural speech to parliament on Tuesday, in which he vowed to demand that the Western world continue its aid to Ukraine.
Tusk also called on Poland's divided political class to unite, saying it cannot afford division as Russia wages a war of aggression across the border, a conflict that many fear could spread if Moscow gains the upper hand.
“The task of Poland, the task of the new government, but also the task of all of us, is to loudly and forcefully demand the full determination of the entire Western community to help Ukraine in this war.
“I will do this from day one,” Tusk said at a session attended by Ukraine's ambassador and former Polish presidents, including anti-communist freedom fighter Lech Walesa.