Israel's government reacted sharply to an administrative and restitution law signed by Polish President Andrzej Duda on Saturday.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem withdrew its Chargé d'Affaires in Warsaw indefinitely.

In addition, Israel’s new ambassador-designate to Poland, Yacov Livne, will not take up his post for the time being.

Israel also advised the Polish ambassador in Tel Aviv, Marek Magierowski, to extend his current home leave.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had also expressed "deep concern" about Polish legislation in a State Department statement.

Jochen Stahnke

Political correspondent for Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Jordan based in Tel Aviv.

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Niklas Zimmermann

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The core of the law passed by the Sejm on Wednesday and signed by President Duda on Saturday is that in future administrative decisions can no longer be appealed after a period of 30 years has expired.

The law also affects the descendants of Jewish Holocaust victims, whose property was expropriated during communist rule after 1945.

Duda said the law would remove legal uncertainty for Polish homeowners and landowners if a previous owner is found after more than seventy years.

This ended an "era of legal chaos" and the "reprivatisation mafia", said Duda of the Polish news agency PAP

Bennett speaks of a "shameful decision"

Israel's Foreign Minister Jair Lapid, on the other hand, said: “Poland has become an anti-democratic and illiberal country tonight that disregards the greatest tragedy in human history.” Lapid said: “We will refuse to show any contempt for the memory of the Holocaust and its victims tolerate. ”Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke of a“ shameful decision ”. Polish law prevents Jews from being compensated for property stolen during the Holocaust.

Lapid also announced that it would reconsider a statement made in 2018 between the government of Poland and then Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that three years ago said: "We reject any action that accuses Poland or the Polish nation as a whole of the atrocities." Polish and Israeli historians as well as the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial were among the critics of the statement at the time.

So far, Lapid has fundamentally distanced itself from the previous Israeli alliance policy with the Višegrad Group, which the previous government in Jerusalem had cultivated.

Poland's prime minister is resisting

For its part, the government in Warsaw has harshly criticized Israel's reaction. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland assesses the behavior of the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the baseless decision to downgrade the rank of the diplomatic mission in Warsaw negatively," wrote the Polish Foreign Ministry on its website. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki also spoke up: “For many years, Israeli politicians have falsely accused Poland of participating in the Holocaust. If the Israeli government continues to attack Poland in this way, it will have a very bad impact on our relations, both bilaterally and internationally. "

The domestic political fronts in the amended administrative law differ from those in the broadcasting law, also passed on Wednesday and internationally criticized, which the ruling party PiS was only able to enforce thanks to votes from the ranks of the opposition protest party Kukiz 15. In contrast, the Sejm approved the Administrative and Restitution Act with a large majority. Only the MPs from the largest opposition party, the Civic Platform (PO), abstained.

The amendment is based on a decision by the Polish Constitutional Court in 2015. The court had ruled that it was not compatible with the rule of law of a democratic state if there was the possibility of contesting an administrative decision that had been reached in violation of the law without any time limit.