Shoah Victims Call On Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Reported Antisemitic Statements.

A coalition of Holocaust survivors has insisted that Nigel Farage tell the truth and issue an apology for alleged anti-Jewish comments he reportedly directed toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth.

The Reform UK leader has previously stated he never targeted anyone with the aim to hurt, suggesting it may have been mere "childish teasing".

"As Holocaust survivors, we understand the deadly peril of hateful words – for we have seen where such words inevitably end," wrote the survivors in a letter.

"It is crucial to understand: lauding Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or hurling racist abuse is not simple joking. Not in a playground. Not ever."

A Pointed Inquiry

The document poses blunt questions to the public figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you expose your classmates to antisemitic abuse?"

The Signatories

The group of 11 survivors contains individuals with devastating personal histories from the Holocaust.

• Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family.
• Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before breaking out in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive.
• Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later moved to Bergen-Belsen, where she was rescued.

Additional names on the letter include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi.

Growing Accounts

This public letter follows the dismissal of corroborating accounts by more than two dozen or more former pupils and teachers as "complete fiction" by a senior party figure.

After the story broke, additional former pupils have come forward. Nearly thirty people connected to the school now assert they witnessed bigoted conduct by him.

One prominent allegation comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who said that a teenage Farage would come near him and utter the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "gas them", on occasion adding a prolonged hissing sound to mimic the sound of gas chambers.

Additional Claims

Additional alumni from ethnic minorities have additionally shared experiences with allegations of targeted insults.

• Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was branded a "racial slur" and has labelled as rubbish the idea that such actions were devoid of malice.
• Another pupil of Asian descent portrayed him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "racial bullying".

The Ultimate Question

The missive from survivors poses a final challenge to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, do you mean that dozens of individuals are not telling the truth? If the words were spoken, now is the time to take responsibility and apologise."

"People who aspire to lead our country should never sow discord by ethnicity or faith. Hatred of Jews must always be confronted. This moment is about ethical duty. The choice is yours, Mr Farage."