News about Lech Walesa

A group of Jewish men in high spirits were seen holding a fire extinguisher aloft and handing it to one another as they danced, laughing and joking about Grzegorz Braun's performance yesterday. The scene was jovial, with onlookers clapping and marching along to traditional Jewish music before one participant feigned outrage and maskedly dismissed the fire exemptor at the camera. Hundreds of thousands of viewers have watched the video, which has been widely criticized by Braun, who has been chastised for the anti-Semitic measure after he referred to Hanukkah as'satanic' and said he was restoring 'normality' by extinguishing the candles. After ripping the red extinguisher from the wall of the government building and blasting the manorah, the right-wing, pro-Russian member of Poland's Confederation party was kicked out of the Sejm (Parliament). But supporters of the lawmaker jumped to his defense, with an online fundraiser bringing more than £14,000 after the MP was fined six months of pay plus another three months of halftime for his conduct.

Grzegorz Braun appears on a video extinguishing the Hanukkah candles inside Poland's parliament house with a fire extinguisher. Braun is seen ripping the red exuisher from the wall of Poland's Sejm building and marching toward the exhibit commemorating the Jewish holiday. He lights the extinguisher as he approaches the candles, covering the floor and stunned bystanders in a cloud of white dust.

GYLES BRANDRETH: Because I have met her - because, at close quarters, I have observed her as she carried out a range of her official duties - people often ask me, leaning forward, narrowing their eyes: 'What was the Queen really like?' My answer disappoints them. 'Very nice,' I say. Quite normal, actually; very straightforward; much as you might have expected.' We wonder how fortunate we have been. Elizabeth II was neither eccentric nor quixotic, and her husband was as honest and straightforward as the day goes. If there is one word that sums up Elizabeth II, it is 'dutiful.' Her life was fueled by passion. She was a dutiful daughter and a dutiful queen.

GYLES BRANDRETH: Because I have met her - because, at close quarters, I have observed her as she carried out a range of her official duties - people often ask me, leaning forward, narrowing their eyes: 'What was the Queen really like?' My answer disappoints them. 'Very nice,' I say. 'Rather normal, actually; very straightforward; as you'd expect.' I wonder if we should remember how fortunate we have been. Elizabeth II was neither eccentric nor quixotic, and her husband was as honest and straightforward as the day goes. If there is one word that sums up Elizabeth II, it is 'dutiful.' Her life was fueled by passion. She was both a dutiful daughter and a dutiful Queen.