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The UK's top law officer, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has demanded Nigel Farage to issue an apology to former schoolmates who allege he targeted with racist abuse them during their years in education.

Hermer stated that Farage had "clearly deeply hurt" many people, based on their accounts of his past behaviour. He commented that the politician's "evolving" denials had been unconvincing.

“During his replies to legitimate questions, not once has Farage genuinely condemned antisemitism,” Hermer informed a news outlet.

Further Testimonies Surface

A recent investigation last month outlined the accounts of more than a dozen ex-pupils of Farage from a private college.

One, Peter Ettedgui, said that a 13-year-old Farage "came up to me and utter: ‘Hitler was right’ or ‘gas them’, sometimes adding a long hiss to simulate the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another pupil from an ethnic minority stated that when he was about nine, he was subjected to similar treatment by a older Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and spoke to anyone looking ‘other’,” the individual said. “That included me on three occasions; inquiring where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘That's how you get back,’ to any place you answered you were from.”

After the story broke, others have stepped forward; approximately twenty people have now stated they were either targets of or saw hurtful actions by Farage.

The alleged events they recounted span the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has rejected that anything he did was "directly" racist or antisemitic, and has suggested the individuals were not telling the truth.

Commentators have pointed out that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his responses.

They also point to his reluctance to discipline a colleague in his party, a MP, after she made remarks about the number of black and brown people she saw in television commercials. She later apologised for the statements.

“His evolving narrative about his behaviour to his Jewish classmates [is] not credible, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He added: “Suggesting that a group of people have all forgotten the same things about his nasty behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Demand for Accountability

“If he aspires to be seen as a credible figure for prime minister, he urgently needs acknowledge the fears of the Jewish people, and apologise to the numerous individuals he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer said.

“Bigotry in all its forms is completely opposed to the principles of this country and we cannot allow it to ever become accepted in politics.”

In a separate interview, the Chancellor said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to appear as a real leader.

“It says a lot how little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would recognise as being written in a certain style to communicate, but also not to say something,” she noted.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In formal correspondence before the release of the investigation, Farage’s lawyers asserted that “the suggestion that Mr Farage ever engaged in, supported, or led such conduct is categorically denied”.

Farage later seemingly shifted his position in an interview, saying: “Have I said things 50 years ago that you could see as being playground talk, you could interpret in a modern light today in some sort of way? Perhaps.”

He commented that he had “never directly really tried to go and harm anybody”. Farage later released a new statement: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been printed as a 13-year-old, nearly 50 years ago.”