Polish Nazi salute case dismissed

Ben Sales

WARSAW (JTA) — A court in Lublin, Poland, conditionally dismissed charges against two Turkish nationals accused of making a Nazi salute at Majdanek, the former concentration camp, placing them on two years’ probation.

The ruling Wednesday regarded Mesut T., 24, and Mehmet A., 21, former students at the Technical University of Lublin. In October, while on a visit to Majdanek, Israeli tourists spotted them making a Nazi salute and alerted museum guards.

The defendants were charged with public promotion of the Fascist regime, a crime that carries a sentence of three years in prison. Each defendant pleaded not guilty, but they accused each other of making the salute. Their lawyers requested the case be dismissed on the grounds that their act did not cause significant social harm.

Prosecution may appeal the decision.

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