Holocaust Survivors Demand Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Reported Anti-Jewish Comments.

A collective of Shoah survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage tell the truth and issue an apology for alleged antisemitic taunts he is said to have made toward Jewish schoolmates during his time at school.

The political party leader has said he never insulted anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "childish teasing".

"Being Shoah survivors, we grasp the deadly peril of bigoted language – for we have witnessed where such words can lead," stated the survivors in a letter.

"It is crucial to understand: praising Hitler, mocking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not in a playground. Not ever."

A Pointed Inquiry

The document puts forth blunt questions to the political figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you target your fellow pupils to bigoted harassment?"

The Signatories

The collective of 11 survivors contains individuals with harrowing personal experiences from the Holocaust.

• Hedi Argent, who lost 27 members of her family.
• Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before escaping in 1942 and spending the rest of the war concealed.
• Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later moved to Bergen-Belsen, where she was liberated.

The remaining survivors include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi.

Growing Accounts

This intervention is a response to the dismissal of similar allegations by more than two dozen or more former pupils and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a high-ranking official.

After the story broke, further individuals from that era have spoken out. Twenty-eight former pupils and teachers now assert they saw racist or antisemitic behaviour by him.

One prominent testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who recalls that a young Farage would come near him and utter the phrases "Hitler was right" and "send them to the gas chambers", at times including a long hiss to simulate the sound of poison gas.

Additional Claims

Other former pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds have additionally shared experiences with stories of targeted insults.

• Cyrus Oshidar stated he was referred to as a "Paki" and has rejected the claim that such actions were devoid of malice.
• Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "blatant racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment".

The Ultimate Question

The survivors' letter puts forth an ultimate challenge to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, are you claiming that scores of witnesses are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the opportunity to acknowledge you were wrong and apologise."

"People who seek to govern our country should not ever divide people by race or religion. Hatred of Jews must never be normalised. This moment is about ethical duty. The decision is your own, Mr Farage."