🔗 Share this article Shoah Victims Call On Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Claimed Antisemitic Remarks. A coalition of Shoah survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage tell the truth and express remorse for alleged anti-Jewish comments he reportedly directed toward Jewish pupils during his time at school. The political party leader has previously stated he never racially abused anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "childish teasing". "As Shoah survivors, we grasp the profound danger of hateful words – for we have seen where such words can lead," stated the survivors in a letter. "Let us be clear: praising Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or hurling racist abuse is not teasing. Not in a playground. Not anywhere." A Direct Question The letter poses blunt questions to the political figure: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you subject your fellow pupils to antisemitic abuse?" The Survivors The collective of 11 survivors features individuals with harrowing personal experiences 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 spending the rest of the war concealed. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later moved 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. Increasing Allegations This public letter comes after the characterisation of related allegations by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader. After the story broke, more contemporaries have spoken out. Twenty-eight ex-students and educators now claim they observed prejudiced actions by him. One notable testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would approach him and repeat the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "send them to the gas chambers", on occasion making a long hiss to simulate the sound of gas chambers. A Broader Pattern More individuals from diverse backgrounds have additionally come forward with allegations of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was branded a "Paki" and has labelled as rubbish the notion that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another student of Asian heritage characterised him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment". A Concluding Demand The missive from survivors asks a concluding question to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, do you mean that dozens of individuals are not telling the truth? If the words were spoken, now is the time to admit your error and apologise." "Individuals who seek to govern our country should under no circumstances create division by background or belief. Antisemitic hatred must never become acceptable. This moment is about personal accountability. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."
A coalition of Shoah survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage tell the truth and express remorse for alleged anti-Jewish comments he reportedly directed toward Jewish pupils during his time at school. The political party leader has previously stated he never racially abused anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "childish teasing". "As Shoah survivors, we grasp the profound danger of hateful words – for we have seen where such words can lead," stated the survivors in a letter. "Let us be clear: praising Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or hurling racist abuse is not teasing. Not in a playground. Not anywhere." A Direct Question The letter poses blunt questions to the political figure: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you subject your fellow pupils to antisemitic abuse?" The Survivors The collective of 11 survivors features individuals with harrowing personal experiences 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 spending the rest of the war concealed. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later moved 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. Increasing Allegations This public letter comes after the characterisation of related allegations by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader. After the story broke, more contemporaries have spoken out. Twenty-eight ex-students and educators now claim they observed prejudiced actions by him. One notable testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who has stated that a teenage Farage would approach him and repeat the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "send them to the gas chambers", on occasion making a long hiss to simulate the sound of gas chambers. A Broader Pattern More individuals from diverse backgrounds have additionally come forward with allegations of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar claimed he was branded a "Paki" and has labelled as rubbish the notion that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another student of Asian heritage characterised him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment". A Concluding Demand The missive from survivors asks a concluding question to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, do you mean that dozens of individuals are not telling the truth? If the words were spoken, now is the time to admit your error and apologise." "Individuals who seek to govern our country should under no circumstances create division by background or belief. Antisemitic hatred must never become acceptable. This moment is about personal accountability. The decision is yours, Mr Farage."