Shoah Victims Call On Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Claimed Anti-Jewish Comments.

A coalition of Holocaust survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage admit the facts and issue an apology for alleged anti-Jewish taunts he is said to have made toward Jewish pupils during his youth.

The Reform UK leader has claimed he never targeted anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "childish teasing".

"As Shoah survivors, we comprehend the profound danger of words of hatred – for we have witnessed where such words inevitably end," stated the survivors in a letter.

"Let us be clear: praising Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not on a schoolyard. Not ever."

An Unequivocal Demand

The correspondence puts forth blunt questions to the party leader: "Are the claims accurate that you stated ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you target your classmates to antisemitic abuse?"

The Signatories

The group of eleven survivors includes individuals with deeply traumatic personal stories from the Holocaust.

• Hedi Argent, who saw the murder of 27 members of her family.
• Simon Winston, who was confined to a ghetto before breaking out 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.

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

Increasing Allegations

This action is a response to the characterisation of corroborating allegations by more than several dozen former pupils and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader.

Following the publication, further individuals from that era have shared their stories. Twenty-eight ex-students and educators now claim they witnessed prejudiced actions by him.

One notable account comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish award-winning director, who recalls that a teenage Farage would come near him and repeat the phrases "Hitler was correct" and "send them to the gas chambers", at times adding a hiss to imitate the sound of the gas chambers.

A Broader Pattern

Other former pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds have additionally come forward with allegations of targeted insults.

• Cyrus Oshidar stated he was branded a "racial slur" and has dismissed the idea that such actions were not meant to hurt.
• Another student of Asian heritage 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 poses a final challenge to Farage: "Should you continue to deny saying those words, is your position that scores of witnesses are fabricating their stories? If the words were spoken, now is the opportunity to take responsibility and apologise."

"People who aspire to lead our country should never create division by ethnicity or faith. Anti-Jewish bigotry must always be confronted. This moment is about personal accountability. The decision is your own, Mr Farage."