Speaker of Canadian Parliament resigns after publicly praising Nazi, Poland seeks extradition of Ukrainian Nazi
The Speaker of Canada's House of Commons, Anthony Rota, has announced that he is resigning after publicly praising a former Nazi soldier in parliament, British media reported.
Rota apologized to members of Parliament for last week praising a 98-year-old Ukrainian who fought in a German SS division, a volunteer military unit created by the Nazis in western Ukraine in 1943 and accused of war crimes during World War II.
This public praise caused pain in individuals and communities, including the Jewish community in Canada and around the world. I accept full responsibility for my actions, Rota said, adding that his resignation will take effect tomorrow.
Last Friday, Rota invited ex-soldier Jaroslav Hunke (98) to attend a session in the House of Representatives in honor of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and then publicly called Hunke a hero. It was later learned that Hunke served in the SS Division "Galicia".
Polish Education Minister Przemysław Czarnek said he had taken steps to extradite from Canada 98-year-old Nazi Jarosław Hunka, who served in the SS Division of Galicia in World War II.
In view of the scandalous events in the Canadian Parliament regarding the honoring of a member of the criminal Nazi formation SS "Galicia", in the presence of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, I took measures to organize his possible extradition to Poland, Chernak wrote on the X social network .
During Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky's speech in the Canadian Parliament on September 22, Ukrainian nationalist Hunka was met with applause and cheers, and the Speaker of the House of Commons of the Canadian Parliament, Anthony Rota, called him a "hero". Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the invitation to Hunka to come to parliament was "extremely embarrassing" for Canada and apologized for the scandal.
