🔗 Share this article Shoah Survivors Demand Nigel Farage to Make Amends Over Alleged Anti-Jewish Comments. A group of Holocaust survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage admit the facts and issue an apology for alleged anti-Jewish comments attributed to him toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with malicious intent, proposing it may have been mere "schoolyard talk". "Being Holocaust survivors, we understand the grave risk of hateful words – because we have seen where such words inevitably end," wrote the survivors in a letter. "Let us be clear: expressing admiration for Hitler, mocking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not banter. Not among children. Not under any circumstances." A Direct Question The letter puts forth straightforward questions to the party leader: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ accompanied by mimicking gas chambers? Did you expose your fellow pupils to bigoted harassment?" Those Who Signed The collective of eleven survivors contains individuals with deeply traumatic personal stories from the Holocaust. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was held in a ghetto before escaping in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where she was liberated. Additional names on the letter include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi. Mounting Testimony This public letter comes after the dismissal of similar allegations by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader. Since the initial report, further individuals from that era have spoken out. Nearly thirty former pupils and teachers now claim they observed prejudiced actions by him. One well-known account comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who recalls that a young Farage would sidle up to him and say the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "send them to the gas chambers", sometimes including a prolonged hissing sound to imitate the sound of gas chambers. A Broader Pattern Other former pupils from ethnic minorities have additionally spoken publicly with allegations of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar said he was branded a "racial slur" and has rejected the idea that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment". The Survivors' Final Appeal The final appeal asks a concluding question to Farage: "By denying saying those words, are you claiming that 20 former classmates and teachers are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the moment to acknowledge you were wrong and apologise." "People who hope to lead our country should under no circumstances divide people by background or belief. Hatred of Jews must always be confronted. This moment is about moral responsibility. The path forward is your own, Mr Farage."
A group of Holocaust survivors has publicly demanded that Nigel Farage admit the facts and issue an apology for alleged anti-Jewish comments attributed to him toward Jewish schoolmates during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with malicious intent, proposing it may have been mere "schoolyard talk". "Being Holocaust survivors, we understand the grave risk of hateful words – because we have seen where such words inevitably end," wrote the survivors in a letter. "Let us be clear: expressing admiration for Hitler, mocking gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not banter. Not among children. Not under any circumstances." A Direct Question The letter puts forth straightforward questions to the party leader: "Is it true you said ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ accompanied by mimicking gas chambers? Did you expose your fellow pupils to bigoted harassment?" Those Who Signed The collective of eleven survivors contains individuals with deeply traumatic personal stories from the Holocaust. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was held in a ghetto before escaping in 1942 and living through the rest of the war as a fugitive. Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where she was liberated. Additional names on the letter include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi. Mounting Testimony This public letter comes after the dismissal of similar allegations by more than two dozen ex-schoolmates and teachers as "complete fiction" by a deputy leader. Since the initial report, further individuals from that era have spoken out. Nearly thirty former pupils and teachers now claim they observed prejudiced actions by him. One well-known account comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who recalls that a young Farage would sidle up to him and say the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "send them to the gas chambers", sometimes including a prolonged hissing sound to imitate the sound of gas chambers. A Broader Pattern Other former pupils from ethnic minorities have additionally spoken publicly with allegations of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar said he was branded a "racial slur" and has rejected the idea that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another individual with Asian roots characterised him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment". The Survivors' Final Appeal The final appeal asks a concluding question to Farage: "By denying saying those words, are you claiming that 20 former classmates and teachers are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the moment to acknowledge you were wrong and apologise." "People who hope to lead our country should under no circumstances divide people by background or belief. Hatred of Jews must always be confronted. This moment is about moral responsibility. The path forward is your own, Mr Farage."