A neo-Nazi attack on Poland’s last surviving prewar synagogue
In the night between April 30 and May 1, 2024, a 16-year-old neo-Nazi attempted to set fire to the Nożyk Synagogue in Warsaw using Molotov cocktails. The building—Poland’s only surviving prewar synagogue still in active use—was struck by a flaming bottle containing a flammable substance. The attack was recorded by security cameras and immediately condemned by Polish officials and Jewish community leaders. The attempted arson revived memories of interwar and wartime antisemitic violence and drew international condemnation as a stark warning of rising extremist hate.
An echo of Europe’s dark past amid a new wave of antisemitic violence
The incident occurred amid heightened global antisemitism following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023. The perpetrator, influenced by neo-Nazi ideology, acted alone, throwing the incendiary device at the synagogue’s façade. Although the fire was quickly extinguished and no one was injured, the attack caused visible burn damage and significant distress to Warsaw’s Jewish community.
Authorities treated the act as an attempted hate crime and launched a full investigation. Polish President Andrzej Duda condemned the attack as “shameful,” declaring on social media: “There is no place for antisemitism in Poland! There is no place for hatred in Poland!” Police sources also noted possible external influence, citing warnings that Russian disinformation networks might be exploiting social tensions to destabilize European societies.
The event underscored both the persistence of antisemitic hatred and the growing concern about the radicalization of youth through online extremist networks—issues that resonate deeply with Poland’s own history of violence against Jews.