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Far-Right Polish MP Draws Outrage with Swastika on Israeli Flag

Polish Far-right Confederation party MP Konrad Berkowicz dsiplays an Israeli flag marked with a swastika in the Sejm in Warsaw, Poland, 14 April 2026. (EPA)
Polish Far-right Confederation party MP Konrad Berkowicz dsiplays an Israeli flag marked with a swastika in the Sejm in Warsaw, Poland, 14 April 2026. (EPA)
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Far-Right Polish MP Draws Outrage with Swastika on Israeli Flag

Polish Far-right Confederation party MP Konrad Berkowicz dsiplays an Israeli flag marked with a swastika in the Sejm in Warsaw, Poland, 14 April 2026. (EPA)
Polish Far-right Confederation party MP Konrad Berkowicz dsiplays an Israeli flag marked with a swastika in the Sejm in Warsaw, Poland, 14 April 2026. (EPA)

A far-right Polish lawmaker displayed a paper Israeli flag emblazoned with a swastika in parliament, accusing the country of "genocide" in the Middle East, with Israel slamming his actions as "antisemitic horror".

"Israel is in the process of committing a genocide of exceptional cruelty before our very eyes," Konrad Berkowicz told lawmakers, comparing the country to a "new Third Reich".

Berkowicz, a member of the far-right nationalist Konfederacja (Confederation) opposition party, then brandished the paper flag, with the Nazi symbol replacing the Star of David at its center.

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".

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 former Nazi death camp Auschwitz commemorating 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 also accused the Israeli army of using white phosphorous bombs in the Middle East, describing in detail the severe injuries, suffering, and deaths of "tens of thousands of women and children" by such weapons.

Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of "illegally" using white phosphorous in Southern Lebanon after launching an offensive against Hezbollah.

Israel has said it "could not confirm" the allegations.

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.

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World

US Says It Disables Another Commercial Ship Trying to Breach Blockade and Reach Iran

Vessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Vessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
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US Says It Disables Another Commercial Ship Trying to Breach Blockade and Reach Iran

Vessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Vessels anchored at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)

The US military has stopped another merchant vessel trying to break through the American blockade of Iranian ports, a US official with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Saturday.

The Gambia-flagged bulk carrier Lian Star ignored multiple warnings from US forces overnight as it tried to enter an Iranian port, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.

The ship was disabled by US aircraft in the Gulf of Oman and remains adrift there, the official said, adding that US forces have not boarded it.

With the latest action, US military has stopped six ships trying to breach the blockade. One was allowed to proceed.

The US launched the blockade on April 17 in response to Iran effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz after the war began with US and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28. A fragile ceasefire has held since April 7.

Now the region and wider world await word on whether a deal is being reached to extend it by 60 days while new talks would be held on Iran’s disputed nuclear program.

Events in the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman have shaken the global economy, with shipments of significant amounts of oil, natural gas and related supplies like fertilizer largely stranded, increasing the strain on consumers and food producers.

The US blockade seeks to limit Iran’s own shipments and further weaken its access to cash, creating more pain for its long-weakened economy.

US President Donald Trump met with advisers on Friday but has yet to decide on whether to move ahead with a deal to extend the ceasefire and reopen the strait. Iran has said the deal had not been finalized.

World

Canada’s Broader Citizenship Rules Draw Strong American Interest, Data Shows

Passengers move through the line at the Main TSA Screening Checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 21 October 2025. (EPA)
Passengers move through the line at the Main TSA Screening Checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 21 October 2025. (EPA)
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Canada’s Broader Citizenship Rules Draw Strong American Interest, Data Shows

Passengers move through the line at the Main TSA Screening Checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 21 October 2025. (EPA)
Passengers move through the line at the Main TSA Screening Checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 21 October 2025. (EPA)

While US-Canadian relations have frayed under US President Donald Trump, data on Canadian citizenship approvals under recently widened rules suggests many Americans would welcome the chance to become Canadian.

Under the new rules, which allow more descendants of Canadians to claim citizenship compared with just first-generation descendants previously, approvals for proof of citizenship by descent have risen by more than 1,000 per month so far this year, data from Canada's immigration agency shows.

That compares with just 275 additional approvals in ‌December 2025, when the ‌new law went into effect.

The data also shows ‌that ⁠roughly 48% of ⁠the additional approvals through February originated from the US.

Immigration lawyers say the high percentage of Americans reflects the historically close ties between the two neighboring countries, while signaling that many Americans see Canada as an attractive place to live or study, especially given recent US political uncertainty.

"The biggest thing is it gives our family options," said William Hunnewell, a 41-year-old based in Seattle who applied earlier this year and expects a ⁠response in nine months to a year. His great-grandfather was ‌a homesteader in Saskatchewan before World War One ‌and his grandfather was born in Canada.

"If my kid wants to study or ‌live in Canada, she can just go — there's no visa, no deadlines," he ‌said.

Most new citizens approved under the law will likely remain abroad but many want to keep their options open, said Nick Berning, a US-based immigration lawyer.

"Current interest in Canadian citizenship is definitely influenced by US politics," Berning said. "They want to stay in the US, but ‌if things become untenable, they want a way out."

Political divisions have deepened in the US, where polls show growing dissatisfaction ⁠with the Trump ⁠administration. Ties between the US and Canada have also grown tense since Trump imposed stiff tariffs on Canadian goods and talked of annexing Canada as the 51st state.

Canadian approvals this year under the newly established category for proof of citizenship totaled 1,140 in January, 1,255 in February and 1,405 in March, according to data that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) provided to Reuters.

Canada's new citizenship law responded to a 2023 court ruling that found limiting citizenship to the first generation born abroad was unconstitutional.

People who have lived outside Canada for generations can now be considered citizens if they can prove descent. That is in sharp contrast with Canadian government efforts in recent years to lower immigration targets.

Berning noted, however, that new citizens who have never lived in Canada cannot pass citizenship on indefinitely to children born abroad.

World

Tens of Thousands March in Support of Türkiye’s Deposed Opposition Leader

Ozgur Ozel, the ousted chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), accompanied by Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas and supporters, visits the mausoleum of modern Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara, Türkiye, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Ozgur Ozel, the ousted chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), accompanied by Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas and supporters, visits the mausoleum of modern Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara, Türkiye, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
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Tens of Thousands March in Support of Türkiye’s Deposed Opposition Leader

Ozgur Ozel, the ousted chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), accompanied by Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas and supporters, visits the mausoleum of modern Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara, Türkiye, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Ozgur Ozel, the ousted chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), accompanied by Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas and supporters, visits the mausoleum of modern Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara, Türkiye, May 30, 2026. (Reuters)

Tens of thousands of supporters of the deposed leader of Türkiye’s main opposition party marched through central Ankara on Saturday.

Ozgur Ozel was removed from his post at the head of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, by court order on May 21. Many people consider the ruling to be a politically motivated bid to neutralize the opposition.

Crowds earlier gathered in Guven Park in the heart of the Turkish capital to hear Ozel deliver a speech condemning his removal. They then joined him on an impromptu march to the mausoleum of Türkiye’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

"They are attempting to replace the CHP’s elected chairman and appoint a trustee," Ozel told supporters. "Today is the day to restart our march to power. I wish this were an internal party matter. This is not an internal matter for the CHP. This is a matter between (President) Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the nation."

The appeals court ruling overturned a 2023 party congress vote that appointed Ozel as CHP leader. The court decision replaced him with his predecessor, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, sparking outrage among party supporters.

Ozel, 51, succeeded the 77-year-old Kilicdaroglu after 13 years of mostly ineffective opposition to Erdogan.

Ozel has framed the court case, which centered on alleged irregularities in the congress vote, as the latest legal attack on the CHP. Criminal cases across the country, mostly alleging corruption in CHP-run municipalities, have seen hundreds of elected officials and party members detained.

The government insists that Türkiye’s courts are impartial and act independently of political pressure.

As people were gathering in Guven Park, Kilicdaroglu was holding a rival gathering at the CHP headquarters in Ankara, which police stormed last Sunday to remove Ozel and his supporters.

Addressing a much smaller crowd, Kilicdaroglu condemned the previous party administration for overseeing widespread corruption.

The CHP is level with the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, in most recent opinion polls and although the next election is not due until 2028, many expect Erdogan to push for early elections.

Ozel delivered a serious blow to the AKP in the 2024 municipal elections, strengthening the opposition’s grip on key cities it had won five years earlier, including Istanbul and Ankara.

The CHP mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, emerged as the likeliest challenger to Erdogan, who has ruled Türkiye since 2003, in the next presidential poll. But he has been imprisoned since March last year as he faces several criminal cases that could see him sentenced to decades behind bars.