Top Law Officer Calls On Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Alleged Antisemitic and Racist Behaviour.

The UK's attorney general, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has demanded Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who allege he racially abused them during their school days.

Hermer remarked that Farage had "clearly deeply hurt" many people, based on their descriptions of his past behaviour. He noted that the leader's "shifting" statements had been difficult to believe.

“During his replies to valid inquiries, not once has Farage actually condemned antisemitism,” Hermer stated to a publication.

Further Testimonies Emerge

A series of inquiries last month outlined the testimony of over a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from a private college.

One, Peter Ettedgui, recalled that a 13-year-old Farage "would approach me and growl: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘send them to the gas chambers’, at times making a long hiss to mimic the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another student of colour stated that when he was roughly nine years old, he was similarly targeted by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil with two similarly tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘different’,” the individual said. “That involved me on three separate times; questioning me where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to any place you replied you were from.”

After the story broke, others have stepped forward; about 20 people have now alleged they were either subject to or witnesses to highly inappropriate conduct by Farage.

The alleged events they outlined cover the period when Farage was aged between 13 and 18.

Changing Stories

The Reform leader has rejected that anything he did was "blatantly" racist or antisemitic, and has claimed the former classmates were misremembering.

Critics have highlighted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his responses.

They also reference his failure to discipline a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she expressed views about the number of black and brown people she saw in adverts. She later said sorry for the comments.

“Nigel Farage’s constantly changing story about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] not credible, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He went on to say: “Arguing that a group of people have somehow misremembered the same things about his offensive behaviour simply is not believable."

Call for Leadership

“If he wants to be seen as a legitimate candidate for the top job, he must acknowledge the concerns of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the many people he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Prejudice in all its forms is anathema to the values of this country and we must not permit it to ever become normalised in society.”

In a separate interview, a senior politician said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to look like a real leader.

“It speaks volumes how little he has to say, and the very careful language that both you and I would identify as being written in a specific manner to communicate, but also avoid saying certain things,” she noted.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters before the release of the investigation, Farage’s representatives stated that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever was involved in, supported, or led such conduct is strongly rejected”.

Farage later altered his explanation in an discussion, stating: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could view as being banter, you could interpret in a today's standards today in a certain manner? Perhaps.”

He said that he had “never directly really tried to go and harm anybody”. Farage subsequently released a further comment: “I can tell you unequivocally that I did not say the things that have been reported as a 13-year-old, decades in the past.”