Shoah Victims Demand Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Reported Antisemitic Comments.
A collective of Shoah survivors has insisted that Nigel Farage be honest and apologise for alleged antisemitic comments he is said to have made toward Jewish students during his time at school.
The Reform UK leader has said he never targeted anyone with malicious intent, framing it may have been mere "playground banter".
"As Shoah survivors, we comprehend the deadly peril of bigoted language – for we have seen where such words ultimately lead," stated the survivors in a open letter.
"We must be unambiguous: expressing admiration for Hitler, mocking gas chambers, or shouting racist insults is not simple joking. Not among children. Not ever."
An Unequivocal Demand
The document poses straightforward questions to the public figure: "Are the claims accurate that you stated ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you subject your peers to bigoted harassment?"
Those Who Signed
The group of 11 survivors contains individuals with harrowing personal stories from the Holocaust.
- Hedi Argent, who saw the murder of 27 members of her immediate and extended family.
- Simon Winston, who was held in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and living through the rest of the war concealed.
- Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later moved 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 action follows the rejection of similar testimony by more than two dozen or more former pupils and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader.
Since the initial report, further individuals from that era have shared their stories. Nearly thirty people connected to the school now state they observed bigoted conduct by him.
One notable allegation comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who recalls that a young Farage would come near him and say the phrases "Hitler was correct" and "send them to the gas chambers", on occasion including a prolonged hissing sound to mimic the sound of poison gas.
Further Allegations
More individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds have additionally shared experiences with accounts of targeted insults.
- Cyrus Oshidar stated he was called a "racial slur" and has labelled as rubbish the idea that such actions were not meant to hurt.
- Another individual with Asian roots described him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell was correct" as a form of "racial intimidation".
A Concluding Demand
The missive from survivors puts forth an ultimate question to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, are you claiming that dozens of individuals are lying? If you did say them, now is the opportunity to acknowledge you were wrong and make amends."
"Those who aspire to lead our country should never sow discord by race or religion. Antisemitic hatred must never be normalised. This moment is about moral responsibility. The choice is yours, Mr Farage."
