Strong reactions were provoked by the order for 180 members of the Israeli Armed Forces to remove their national flags during an official ceremony at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.
In an incident characterized as “humiliating” and unprecedented in the chronicles of the annual ceremony, the Israeli military personnel—members of the “Witnesses in Uniform” program—were forced to lower the Israeli flags just before entering the former Nazi extermination camp, during a memorial march for Holocaust victims.
Reactions to the Auschwitz incident
The confrontation began when, according to an Israeli soldier who spoke to Ynet, a museum security member (not a Polish police officer, as initially reported) requested the flags be removed before the procession entered the camp area. Despite objections from Israeli officers and local staff, the order was ultimately enforced.
“We were in formation, ready for the ceremony, with flags and trumpet accompaniment, as happens every year. At the gate with ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ they stopped us and asked us not to enter with the flags,” he reported.
The flags were removed and stored in a ceremonial vehicle, while the rest of the visit continued without music or official symbols, with the atmosphere described as “heavy and tense.”
Auschwitz Museum’s position and Israel’s reactions
The Museum confirmed the incident, attributing responsibility to “lack of prior coordination” from the organizers’ side. In its statement, it noted that “flags or banners on poles are only permitted during scheduled and approved ceremonies,” citing the need to maintain neutrality, dignity and respect for the memorial site.
Meanwhile, museum officials emphasized they had spoken with Israel’s ambassador to Poland and the matter “is considered closed.” However, the Israeli Ministry of Defense has not yet issued an official statement.
From the Israeli delegation’s side, reactions were intense. One member spoke of “unprecedented discrimination against a uniformed ceremony,” noting that in previous visits to camps like Treblinka, Majdanek, and Auschwitz itself, Israeli military flags were never prohibited.
“There are iconic photographs of soldiers holding flags at Birkenau. What happened this year is an attempt to falsify historical truth and proof of contemporary antisemitism,” a mission member stated characteristically.
Previous incidents of tension
The incident follows another museum action earlier this year, when Israeli flags with yellow ribbons were confiscated from British Jewish visitors. These ribbons were symbols of solidarity with hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Source: The Times
