In a statement posted on X, the Polish foreign ministry said criticism of Israel’s policies "does not justify such a gesture," which it described as "deeply offensive not only to Jews and Israelis, but also to all those for whom the Holocaust and other Nazi crimes constitute an important element of memory and identity."
"Poles have a special responsibility to preserve the memory of the Holocaust, the greatest crime committed on occupied territory," the ministry said, adding that "any such provocations must be considered reprehensible and unacceptable."
"Poles have a particular responsibility to preserve the historical memory of the Holocaust, the greatest crime committed in the occupied territories," the ministry said, adding that "any such provocations must be regarded as reprehensible and unacceptable."
The parliament's office, speaking on behalf of Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty, also condemned the incident and said a motion had been prepared to penalize Berkowicz.
Legal services are reviewing whether further steps, including notifying prosecutors, are warranted, the office said.
The US ambassador to Poland, Tom Rose, also criticized Berkowicz’s actions in a post on X, writing: “Shame, shame, shame on you! Maybe even you have noticed that we Jews aren't so easy to push around anymore, are we? We defend ourselves with all our strength without apology — we stand with our friends and we know how to fight and defeat our enemies."
Israel’s embassy in Warsaw said: "We condemn in the strongest terms today’s antisemitic horror in the Polish Parliament by MP Berkowicz. On Israel’s official Holocaust Remembrance Day, a Polish MP desecrated the Israeli flag and compared the Jewish symbol and the Jewish state to the Nazis, instead of showing solidarity with Holocaust victims."
It added: "As Holocaust survivors march in Auschwitz today, this vile anti-Jewish act is especially appalling. Support for it by other politicians only deepens the shame. The Polish authorities must act now to address this disgrace and remove this moral stain."
Israel's Holocaust Remembrance Day, or Yom HaShoah, is observed annually on the 27th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan to commemorate the 6 million Jews killed during the Holocaust.