Poland wants to ban National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from entering the country, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday, after outrage in Warsaw over the detention of Gaza flotilla activists.
Earlier, the Polish minister had summoned the Israeli chargé d'affaires over the detention of Gaza flotilla activists, including Polish nationals, demanding their immediate release and an apology.
"Poland firmly condemns the conduct of representatives of the Israeli authorities towards activists of the Global Sumud Flotilla detained by the Israeli army, including Polish citizens," Radoslaw Sikorski said on X.
He said Poland expected its citizens to be treated in line with international standards, and that consular officials were seeking access to detainees.
A spokesperson for the ministry later said that there were two Polish nationals detained and that they would be repatriated on Thursday night.
"Today, our citizens, and not only our citizens, will leave Israel. This is very good news," Maciej Wewior told reporters.
"Minister Sikorski has decided to ask the Ministry of Interior and Administration to ban Ben-Gvir from entering the territory of the Republic of Poland due to his actions," he added.
The Israeli chargé d’affaires had been summoned "to convey our outrage and demand an apology for the extremely inappropriate behavior of a member of the Israeli government," Sikorski wrote on X.
EU foreign ministers should discuss at their next meeting the adoption of sanctions against Ben-Gvir, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani also said on Thursday.
Tajani said on X he had made a formal request to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, on account of the Israeli minister's "unacceptable actions" against Gaza flotilla activists.
Ben-Gvir draws worldwide condemnation for mistreatment of activists
On Wednesday, Ben-Gvir launched a political storm when he shared videos of himself harassing detained flotilla activists in Ashdod after Israeli forces intercepted their ships on Tuesday.
The videos raised widespread condemnation from international officials, including the president of the European Union, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Huckabee called the flotilla a "stupid stunt," but also denounced Ben-Gvir's actions as having "betrayed dignity of his [Ben-Gvir's] nation."
Several countries also summoned their respective Israeli ambassadors in response to the treatment of the flotilla activists, including France, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Corinne Baum contributed to this report.