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The United Kingdom's top law officer, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has urged Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who allege he racially abused them during their time at school.

Hermer remarked that Farage had "undoubtedly deeply hurt" many people, judging by their testimonies of his actions as a youth. He commented that the leader's "shifting" statements had been unconvincing.

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

New Allegations Surface

A published report last month documented the testimony of over a dozen former classmates of Farage from a south London school.

One, Peter Ettedgui, described that a teenage Farage "came up to me and utter: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, at times making a long hiss to simulate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another student of colour alleged that when he was about nine, he was subjected to similar treatment by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He approached a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That included me on three occasions; asking me where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to any place you answered you were from.”

After the story broke, others have stepped forward; around two dozen people have now alleged they were either targets of or observed hurtful actions by Farage.

The incidents they recounted cover the period when Farage was aged between 13 and 18.

Evolving Explanations

The political figure has rejected that anything he did was "explicitly" racist or antisemitic, and has claimed the accusers were not telling the truth.

Commentators have noted that Farage has not managed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his denials.

They also reference his reluctance to reprimand a fellow Reform MP, Sarah Pochin, after she expressed views about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later apologised for the remarks.

“His evolving narrative about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer said.

He continued: “Claiming that a group of people have all misremembered the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Call for Leadership

“If he wishes to be seen as a credible figure for prime minister, he urgently needs confront the fears of the Jewish community, and say sorry to the those he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Prejudice in all its forms is abhorrent to the standards of this country and we should not let it to ever become legitimised in politics.”

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 very little he has to say, and the very careful language that both you and I would recognise as being drafted in a particular way to say something, but also avoid saying certain things,” she said.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters before the publication of the investigation, Farage’s representatives stated that “the implication that Mr Farage ever engaged in, approved of, or led this behaviour is strongly rejected”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his explanation in an discussion, stating: “Did I say things decades ago that you could see as being playground talk, you could interpret in a today's standards today in some way? Perhaps.”

He added that he had “never directly attempted to go and hurt anybody”. Farage afterwards released a new statement: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been published aged 13, decades in the past.”