US Republican Congressman Clay Higgins has attracted heavy criticism online after visiting the memorial museum to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.
In the video, Captain Higgins is heard talking about the horrific circumstances that inmates suffered at the hands of the Nazis between 1940 and 1945. But he courted controversy when he continued his narration while standing inside a former gas chamber.
Captain Higgins tells the camera: "They would squeeze 700 people in here. The guards would drop Zyklon cynadide gas from up above through hatches. The cyanide pellets activated when they hit oxygen. After about 20 minutes, everyone was dead."
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The Auschwitz Memorial Twitter page has reacted to the video by posting this message on Twitter.
It reads: "Everyone has the right to personal reflections. However, inside a former gas chamber, there should be mournful silence. It's not a stage."
The memorial has also uploaded an image, showing that visitors are reminded to remain silent before entering the chambers.
"You are in a building where the SS murdered thousands of people. Please maintain silence here: remember their suffering and show respect for their memory," the sign reads.
People on social media have been quick to criticise the Congressman.
Congressman Higgins uses the setting of Auschwitz as a reason why "Homeland Security must be squared away. Why our military must be invincible."
He has not yet responded to the online criticism, with his social media activity not exploring subjects beyond celebrations of America's Independence Day.
Featured Image Credit: YouTube/LeeJohnsonMediaTopics: Social Media, Nazi
