🔗 Share this article Shoah Victims Demand Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Claimed Antisemitic Statements. A coalition of Holocaust survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage admit the facts and express remorse for reported anti-Jewish taunts he is said to have made toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never racially abused anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "schoolyard talk". "As Shoah survivors, we understand the deadly peril of hateful words – because we have witnessed where such words can lead," wrote the survivors in a open letter. "It is crucial to understand: expressing admiration for Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not among children. Not anywhere." An Unequivocal Demand The correspondence poses straightforward questions to the political figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you target your fellow pupils to antisemitic abuse?" The Survivors The group of 11 survivors features individuals with devastating personal stories from the Holocaust. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later incarcerated at 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. Increasing Allegations This action follows the characterisation of related testimony by more than two dozen or more alumni and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader. Since the initial report, further individuals from that era have come forward. 28 people connected to the school now assert they saw racist or antisemitic behaviour by him. One well-known testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born award-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would sidle up to him and say the phrases "Hitler was right" and "gas them", sometimes making a prolonged hissing sound to mimic the sound of gas chambers. Further Allegations Other former pupils from ethnic minorities have likewise shared experiences with accounts of direct abuse. Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was referred to as a "racial slur" and has labelled as rubbish the claim that such actions were without intent. Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell was correct" as a form of "racial bullying". The Survivors' Final Appeal The missive from survivors poses a final challenge 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 opportunity to take responsibility and apologise." "Those who aspire to lead our country should never divide people by background or belief. Anti-Jewish bigotry must always be confronted. This moment is about personal accountability. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."
A coalition of Holocaust survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage admit the facts and express remorse for reported anti-Jewish taunts he is said to have made toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never racially abused anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "schoolyard talk". "As Shoah survivors, we understand the deadly peril of hateful words – because we have witnessed where such words can lead," wrote the survivors in a open letter. "It is crucial to understand: expressing admiration for Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not among children. Not anywhere." An Unequivocal Demand The correspondence poses straightforward questions to the political figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you target your fellow pupils to antisemitic abuse?" The Survivors The group of 11 survivors features individuals with devastating personal stories from the Holocaust. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later incarcerated at 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. Increasing Allegations This action follows the characterisation of related testimony by more than two dozen or more alumni and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader. Since the initial report, further individuals from that era have come forward. 28 people connected to the school now assert they saw racist or antisemitic behaviour by him. One well-known testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born award-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would sidle up to him and say the phrases "Hitler was right" and "gas them", sometimes making a prolonged hissing sound to mimic the sound of gas chambers. Further Allegations Other former pupils from ethnic minorities have likewise shared experiences with accounts of direct abuse. Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was referred to as a "racial slur" and has labelled as rubbish the claim that such actions were without intent. Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell was correct" as a form of "racial bullying". The Survivors' Final Appeal The missive from survivors poses a final challenge 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 opportunity to take responsibility and apologise." "Those who aspire to lead our country should never divide people by background or belief. Anti-Jewish bigotry must always be confronted. This moment is about personal accountability. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."