2025-01-09 14:47 update: 2025-01-09, 14:52
Photo PAP/Rafał Guz
Poland’s President Andrzej Duda has asked the Polish government to provide protection to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, if he were to attend the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Times of Israel portal reported on Thursday.
Citing information from the Bloomberg agency, it said that Duda sent Prime Minister Donald Tusk a letter saying that the authorities should guarantee Netanyahu's undisturbed stay in Poland due to the exceptional circumstances of the event.
In the letter, cited by the Interia website, Duda wrote that "if the current prime minister of the State of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, expressed willingness to take part in the ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in person, the government of the Republic of Poland should ensure his undisturbed stay on the territory of our country in these absolutely exceptional circumstances - despite the arrest warrant."
Netanyahu is subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on charges of war crimes in Gaza in the context of Israel's military campaign against the terrorist organisation Hamas, in which 45,500 Palestinians lost their lives so far, according to the health ministry under Hamas.
The ceremony commemorating the liberation of Auschwitz is set for January 27, International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The spokesperson of Netanyahu said however, that the prime minister has not received any invitations.
Duda’s request may put the Polish government in a difficult situation, wrote Bloomberg, since as a signatory to the treaty establishing the ICC, Poland is obliged to abide by its rulings, which includes being ready to bring those accused of crimes to justice.
Malgorzata Paprocka, the head of the president’s office, confirmed to PAP that Duda addressed a letter to Tusk, asking the government to provide protection to Netanyahu should he attend the event.
"All instruments related to ensuring the stay of the prime minister (Netanyahu - PAP), or any other representative of the state... are in the hands of the prime minister (Tusk - PAP) and the Council of Ministers due to the subordination of the services," she said.
The Auschwitz camp was established by the Germans in 1940, initially for the imprisonment of Poles. Auschwitz II-Birkenau was opened two years later and became the main site for the mass extermination of Jews. There was also a network of sub-camps in the complex. At least 1.1 million people were killed at Auschwitz, mainly Jews, but also Poles, Roma, Soviet prisoners of war and people of other nationalities.
It was liberated by the Red Army on January 27, 1945. In 1947, the camp site was declared a national memorial site. (PAP)
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