Holocaust Victims Urge Nigel Farage to Make Amends Over Reported Anti-Jewish Remarks.

A group of Shoah 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 political party leader has previously stated he never targeted anyone with malicious intent, suggesting it may have been mere "schoolyard talk".

"Being Holocaust survivors, we understand the profound danger of words of hatred – because we have witnessed where such words can lead," stated the survivors in a open letter.

"We must be unambiguous: praising Hitler, mimicking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not teasing. Not among children. Not under any circumstances."

An Unequivocal Demand

The correspondence puts forth direct questions to the political figure: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ accompanied by mimicking gas chambers? Did you subject your peers to anti-Jewish taunts?"

The Signatories

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

• Hedi Argent, who lost 27 members of her immediate and extended family.
• Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before escaping in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive.
• Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later incarcerated at Bergen-Belsen, where she was rescued.

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

Growing Accounts

This intervention follows the characterisation of related allegations by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a high-ranking official.

After the story broke, further individuals from that era have spoken out. 28 ex-students and educators now assert they observed bigoted conduct by him.

One well-known allegation comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who has stated that a young Farage would approach him and utter the phrases "Hitler was correct" and "gas them", on occasion making a prolonged hissing sound to mimic the sound of the gas chambers.

Additional Claims

Other former pupils from ethnic minorities have likewise spoken publicly with allegations of targeted insults.

• Cyrus Oshidar said he was referred to as a "Paki" and has dismissed the notion that such actions were without intent.
• Another individual with Asian roots described him as an "open racist" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell was right" as a form of "ethnic harassment".

A Concluding Demand

The survivors' letter puts forth an ultimate dilemma to Farage: "If you deny saying those words, are you claiming that 20 former classmates and teachers are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the time to take responsibility and make amends."

"Those who hope to lead our country should never divide people by background or belief. Hatred of Jews must always be confronted. This moment is about personal accountability. The choice is your own, Mr Farage."