Holocaust Victims Call On Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Alleged Anti-Jewish Remarks.
A group of Holocaust survivors has insisted that Nigel Farage tell the truth and express remorse for alleged anti-Jewish abuse he reportedly directed toward Jewish pupils during his youth.
The Reform UK leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with the aim to hurt, framing it may have been mere "schoolyard talk".
"As Holocaust survivors, we comprehend the grave risk of hateful words – because we have seen where such words ultimately lead," wrote the survivors in a missive.
"Let us be clear: lauding Hitler, mocking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not on a schoolyard. Not under any circumstances."
A Direct Question
The document puts forth direct questions to the public figure: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you target your classmates to bigoted harassment?"
Those Who Signed
The group of eleven survivors contains individuals with devastating personal histories from the Holocaust.
- Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her immediate and extended 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 imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where she was freed.
Additional names on the letter include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi.
Increasing Allegations
This public letter follows the dismissal of corroborating accounts by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader.
Following the publication, additional former pupils have shared their stories. Twenty-eight people connected to the school now assert they witnessed bigoted conduct by him.
One notable testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish award-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would come near him and say the phrases "Hitler was right" and "gas them", sometimes including a long hiss to imitate the sound of poison gas.
Further Allegations
Other former pupils from diverse backgrounds have also come forward with allegations of targeted insults.
- Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was called a "racial slur" and has dismissed the claim that such actions were not meant to hurt.
- Another individual with Asian roots portrayed him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "racial intimidation".
The Survivors' Final Appeal
The missive from survivors asks a concluding question to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, do you mean that 20 former classmates and teachers are lying? If the words were spoken, now is the opportunity to acknowledge you were wrong and apologise."
"Individuals who hope to lead our country should never create division by ethnicity or faith. Anti-Jewish bigotry must never be normalised. This moment is about moral responsibility. The path forward is yours, Mr Farage."
