🔗 Share this article Shoah Survivors Call On Nigel Farage to Make Amends Over Claimed Anti-Jewish Statements. A group of Holocaust survivors has insisted that Nigel Farage tell the truth and apologise for reported anti-Jewish taunts attributed to him toward Jewish pupils during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with the aim to hurt, framing it may have been mere "childish teasing". "As Shoah survivors, we grasp the deadly peril of words of hatred – because we have witnessed where such words ultimately lead," declared the survivors in a open letter. "Let us be clear: expressing admiration for Hitler, jeering at gas chambers, or shouting racist insults is not banter. Not in a playground. 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 classmates to antisemitic abuse?" Those Who Signed The collective of 11 survivors features individuals with harrowing personal experiences from the Nazi genocide. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and spending the rest of the war in hiding. 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. Growing Accounts This public letter comes after the rejection of corroborating testimony by more than several dozen alumni and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader. Following the publication, additional former pupils have spoken out. 28 former pupils and teachers now assert they saw prejudiced actions by him. One prominent allegation comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish award-winning director, who has stated that a young Farage would come near him and say the phrases "Hitler was right" and "send them to the gas chambers", sometimes making a hiss to imitate the sound of the gas chambers. A Broader Pattern Additional alumni from diverse backgrounds have likewise spoken publicly with accounts of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar said he was referred to as a "Paki" and has rejected the claim that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another individual with Asian roots 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 asks a concluding challenge to Farage: "By denying saying those words, are you claiming that dozens of individuals are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the time to admit your error and make amends." "People who hope to lead our country should never create division by race or religion. Antisemitic hatred must never be normalised. This moment is about personal accountability. The choice is yours, Mr Farage."
A group of Holocaust survivors has insisted that Nigel Farage tell the truth and apologise for reported anti-Jewish taunts attributed to him toward Jewish pupils during his youth. The political party leader has claimed he never insulted anyone with the aim to hurt, framing it may have been mere "childish teasing". "As Shoah survivors, we grasp the deadly peril of words of hatred – because we have witnessed where such words ultimately lead," declared the survivors in a open letter. "Let us be clear: expressing admiration for Hitler, jeering at gas chambers, or shouting racist insults is not banter. Not in a playground. 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 classmates to antisemitic abuse?" Those Who Signed The collective of 11 survivors features individuals with harrowing personal experiences from the Nazi genocide. Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her family. Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and spending the rest of the war in hiding. 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. Growing Accounts This public letter comes after the rejection of corroborating testimony by more than several dozen alumni and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader. Following the publication, additional former pupils have spoken out. 28 former pupils and teachers now assert they saw prejudiced actions by him. One prominent allegation comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish award-winning director, who has stated that a young Farage would come near him and say the phrases "Hitler was right" and "send them to the gas chambers", sometimes making a hiss to imitate the sound of the gas chambers. A Broader Pattern Additional alumni from diverse backgrounds have likewise spoken publicly with accounts of targeted insults. Cyrus Oshidar said he was referred to as a "Paki" and has rejected the claim that such actions were not meant to hurt. Another individual with Asian roots 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 asks a concluding challenge to Farage: "By denying saying those words, are you claiming that dozens of individuals are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the time to admit your error and make amends." "People who hope to lead our country should never create division by race or religion. Antisemitic hatred must never be normalised. This moment is about personal accountability. The choice is yours, Mr Farage."