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The United Kingdom's top law officer, one of the most senior Jewish ministers, has demanded Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who allege he targeted with racist abuse them during their school days.

Hermer stated that Farage had "clearly deeply hurt" many people, according to their testimonies of his actions as a youth. He commented that the politician's "constantly changing" statements had been less than credible.

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

Fresh Claims Emerge

A recent investigation last month outlined the statements of more than a dozen ex-pupils of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, Peter Ettedgui, described that a teenage Farage "came up to me and growl: ‘The Nazi leader was correct’ or ‘gas them’, occasionally including a long hiss to mimic the sound of the Nazi gas chambers”.

Another minority ethnic pupil claimed that when he was about nine, he was similarly targeted by a 17-year-old Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil with two equally tall mates and addressed anyone looking ‘other’,” the person said. “That involved me on three occasions; asking me where I was from, and gesturing, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you said you were from.”

Following the initial report, additional individuals have emerged; around two dozen people have now stated they were either subject to or observed highly inappropriate actions by Farage.

The alleged events they described span the period when Farage was aged a teenager.

Denials and Shifting Positions

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

Observers have noted that Farage has failed to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism more broadly in his statements.

They also cite his reluctance to discipline a fellow Reform MP, a MP, after she made remarks about the number of people of colour she saw in adverts. She later expressed regret for the comments.

“His shifting account about his behaviour to his peers [is] hard to believe, to say the least,” Hermer commented.

He continued: “Claiming that two dozen individuals have somehow forgotten the same things about his hurtful behaviour simply is not believable."

Question of Character

“If he wishes to be seen as a serious contender for prime minister, he has to acknowledge the concerns of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the those he has obviously deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer concluded.

“Racism in all its forms is abhorrent to the values of this country and we must not permit it to ever become legitimised in society.”

In a different discussion, a senior politician said Farage should “say something” if he wanted to be considered a true statesman.

“It says a lot how little he has to say, and the guarded phrasing that both you and I would recognise as being drafted in a particular way to communicate, but also dodge the issue,” she remarked.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In lawyers' communications prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s lawyers stated that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever took part in, approved of, or led racist or antisemitic behaviour is categorically denied”.

Farage later appeared to change his explanation in an appearance, saying: “Have I said things decades ago that you could interpret as being playground talk, you could interpret in a contemporary context today in some way? Possibly.”

He commented that he had “never directly sought to go and harm anybody”. Farage later put out a fresh denial: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been published as a 13-year-old, decades in the past.”