Holocaust Victims Demand Nigel Farage to Apologise Over Alleged Antisemitic Statements.
A collective of Holocaust survivors has called for that Nigel Farage tell the truth and apologise for alleged anti-Jewish comments attributed to him toward Jewish students during his time at school.
The political party leader has said he never insulted anyone with deliberate cruelty, framing it may have been mere "schoolyard talk".
"Being Shoah survivors, we comprehend the profound danger of bigoted language – for we have experienced firsthand where such words ultimately lead," declared the survivors in a open letter.
"We must be unambiguous: expressing admiration for Hitler, jeering at gas chambers, or hurling racist abuse is not simple joking. Not among children. Not under any circumstances."
A Pointed Inquiry
The correspondence poses direct questions to the public figure: "Are the claims accurate that you stated ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ and mimicked gas chambers? Did you expose your fellow pupils to anti-Jewish taunts?"
The Signatories
The collective of 11 survivors contains individuals with harrowing personal stories from the Nazi genocide.
- Hedi Argent, who saw the murder of 27 members of her immediate and extended family.
- Simon Winston, who was imprisoned in a ghetto before breaking out in 1942 and spending the rest of the war concealed.
- Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was deported to 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 action comes after the dismissal of similar accounts by more than two dozen or more former pupils and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a senior party figure.
Since the initial report, additional former pupils have shared their stories. 28 ex-students and educators now claim they saw prejudiced actions by him.
One well-known account comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish Bafta and Emmy-winning director, who said that a young Farage would come near him and utter the phrases "Hitler had the correct idea" and "gas them", at times making a prolonged hissing sound to simulate the sound of poison gas.
Further Allegations
More individuals from diverse backgrounds have additionally come forward with allegations of direct abuse.
- Cyrus Oshidar stated he was referred to as a "racial slur" and has labelled as rubbish the idea that such actions were without intent.
- Another student of Asian heritage characterised him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment".
A Concluding Demand
The survivors' letter puts forth an ultimate question to Farage: "Should you continue to deny saying those words, do you mean that scores of witnesses are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the opportunity to take responsibility and say sorry."
"Individuals who seek to govern our country should not ever divide people by race or religion. Hatred of Jews must never become acceptable. This moment is about ethical duty. The path forward is yours, Mr Farage."
