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View of the plenary hall of the European Parliament (archive image)
Photo: Philipp von Ditfurth/ dpa
A nationalist MP from Bulgaria gave the Hitler salute in the European Parliament.
After speaking in a debate on the rule of law in Poland and Hungary on Wednesday and walking up the steps to the exit of the Chamber, Angel Dzhambazki of the Eurosceptic Group of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) turned around - and stretched out his right arm a few seconds ahead.
The scene is captured on video of the debate.
During his speech in parliament, the MP from the Bulgarian nationalist party VMRO had previously said, among other things: "We will never allow you to tell us what to say and what to do." And: "Long live Bulgaria, Hungary, Orbán, Fidesz and the Europe of nation states.«
On Twitter, Dzhambazki also described the European Court of Justice's (ECJ) recent decision on the rule of law mechanism as an "abomination".
On Wednesday, the ECJ dismissed the lawsuits brought by Poland and Hungary against the mechanism for reducing EU funds in the event of violations of the rule of law (you can find out more about the judgment here).
The governments of Poland and Hungary have long been criticized for breaches of the rule of law.
reactions to the incident
EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola condemned Dzhambazki's act on Twitter: "A fascist salute in the European Parliament is unacceptable." Dzhambazki insulted "everyone in Europe" with it.
"This gesture is part of the darkest chapter of our history and must stay there."
The EPP group leader in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber, wrote on Twitter that he strongly condemned the incident.
"It is the opposite of what the European Parliament stands for and we call for immediate sanctions."
Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno was chairing the debate at the time of the incident.
She had explained that the institution would use the video recordings to check “whether there was a fascist salute or not”.
If this is the case, sanctions would be taken.
The European Parliament's Rules of Procedure state that MEPs must refrain from "any inappropriate conduct" and "any offensive language".
Violations of these rules can result in, among other things, being banned from participating in parliamentary activities or having allowances withdrawn.
aar/AFP
