Shoah Victims Urge Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Claimed Antisemitic Remarks.

A coalition of Holocaust survivors has called for that Nigel Farage admit the facts and apologise for reported anti-Jewish abuse he is said to have made toward Jewish schoolmates during his time at school.

The political party leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with the aim to hurt, suggesting it may have been mere "schoolyard talk".

"Being Shoah survivors, we grasp the profound danger of hateful words – because we have experienced firsthand where such words inevitably end," stated the survivors in a missive.

"It is crucial to understand: praising Hitler, jeering at gas chambers, or shouting racist insults is not banter. Not among children. Not anywhere."

A Direct Question

The correspondence puts forth direct questions to the party leader: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ accompanied by mimicking gas chambers? Did you expose your peers to anti-Jewish taunts?"

The Signatories

The group of eleven survivors contains individuals with deeply traumatic personal histories from the Nazi genocide.

• Hedi Argent, who lost 27 members of her immediate and extended family.
• Simon Winston, who was confined to a ghetto before escaping in 1942 and living through the rest of the war concealed.
• Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later transferred 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.

Mounting Testimony

This public letter comes after the characterisation of similar accounts by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader.

After the story broke, more contemporaries have shared their stories. 28 people connected to the school now assert they saw racist or antisemitic behaviour by him.

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

Further Allegations

Other former pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds have additionally come forward with stories of personal harassment.

• Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was referred to as a "Paki" and has rejected the notion that such actions were without intent.
• Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "blatant racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell was correct" as a form of "racial bullying".

The Ultimate Question

The final appeal asks a concluding dilemma to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, do you mean that dozens of individuals are lying? If the words were spoken, now is the time to acknowledge you were wrong and apologise."

"Those who aspire to lead our country should not ever create division by race or religion. Hatred of Jews must never become acceptable. This moment is about ethical duty. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."