BRUSSELS 

Poland's parliament, the Sejm, on Tuesday voted to strip former Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz of his parliamentary immunity, paving the way for prosecutors to bring charges against him over alleged disclosure of classified information, according to TVP World.

Macierewicz, who led the investigation into the 2010 Smolensk air disaster under the previous Law and Justice (PiS) government, is accused of revealing "top-secret," "secret," "confidential," and "restricted" information between 2018 and 2022.

The crash claimed the life of then-President Lech Kaczynski and 95 others, including senior officials.

While Polish and Russian probes concluded the incident was caused by pilot error and weather, Macierewicz alleged Russian involvement and accused Prime Minister Donald Tusk's previous government of covering it up.

Following Tusk's return to power in 2023, the investigative commission was disbanded and its findings reviewed, leading to legal action against Macierewicz.

He denies wrongdoing, asserting that all disclosures were approved by security services. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison.