Holocaust Survivors Call On Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Claimed Antisemitic Statements.

A collective of Holocaust survivors has called for that Nigel Farage be honest and apologise for reported anti-Jewish abuse attributed to him toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth.

The political party leader has previously stated he never targeted anyone with deliberate cruelty, proposing it may have been mere "playground banter".

"As Holocaust survivors, we comprehend the profound danger of hateful words – because we have witnessed where such words ultimately lead," wrote the survivors in a open letter.

"Let us be clear: praising Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or shouting racist insults is not banter. Not in a playground. Not anywhere."

A Direct Question

The document puts forth blunt questions to the political figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you target your classmates to antisemitic abuse?"

The Survivors

The group of eleven survivors contains individuals with harrowing personal stories from the Holocaust.

• Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family.
• Simon Winston, who was confined to a ghetto before breaking out in 1942 and spending the rest of the war concealed.
• Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later incarcerated at Bergen-Belsen, where she was rescued.

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

Growing Accounts

This action comes after the rejection of similar allegations by more than two dozen or more alumni and teachers as "fabricated nonsense" by a senior party figure.

Following the publication, more contemporaries have shared their stories. 28 ex-students and educators now claim they witnessed prejudiced actions by him.

One notable testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would sidle up to him and repeat the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "gas them", at times including a hiss to imitate the sound of the gas chambers.

Further Allegations

More individuals from ethnic minorities have also come forward with accounts of targeted insults.

• Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was called a "racial slur" and has rejected the notion that such actions were devoid of malice.
• Another student of Asian heritage characterised him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "racial bullying".

A Concluding Demand

The final appeal puts forth an ultimate challenge to Farage: "By denying saying those words, is your position that scores of witnesses are fabricating their stories? If you did say them, now is the moment to take responsibility and say sorry."

"Those who hope to lead our country should under no circumstances create division by background or belief. Hatred of Jews must never become acceptable. This moment is about moral responsibility. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."