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The United Kingdom's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has urged Nigel Farage to issue an apology to school contemporaries who assert he targeted with racist abuse them during their years in education.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, based on their testimonies of his alleged conduct. He noted that the leader's "constantly changing" explanations had been unconvincing.

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

Fresh Claims Come to Light

A recent investigation last month detailed the accounts of over a dozen one-time schoolmates of Farage from a south London school.

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

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

“He approached a pupil accompanied by two equally tall mates and spoke to anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the person said. “That included me on three occasions; asking me where I was from, and motioning, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you said you were from.”

After the story broke, more people have emerged; about 20 people have now alleged they were either subject to or observed highly inappropriate conduct by Farage.

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

Denials and Shifting Positions

The political figure has denied that anything he did was "explicitly" racist or antisemitic, and has claimed the former classmates were misremembering.

Observers have highlighted that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism in a wider sense in his denials.

They also cite his failure to discipline a colleague in his party, a MP, after she made remarks about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later apologised for the statements.

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

He continued: “Arguing that 20 people have somehow misremembered the same things about his offensive behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Call for Leadership

“If he wants to be seen as a legitimate candidate for high office, he urgently needs confront the fears of the Jewish community, and say sorry to the many people he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer said.

“Prejudice in all its forms is anathema to the values of this country and we should not let it to ever become legitimised in society.”

In a other comments, Rachel Reeves said Farage should “make a statement” if he wanted to be considered a real leader.

“It speaks volumes how little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would recognise as being drafted in a specific manner to communicate, but also not to say something,” she said.

Legal Letters and Later Statements

In legal letters prior to the publication of the investigation, Farage’s legal team stated that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever engaged in, supported, or led such conduct is completely refuted”.

Farage later appeared to change his explanation in an interview, stating: “Have I said things as a youth that you could interpret as being playground talk, you could interpret in a modern light today in some way? Yes.”

He commented that he had “not once intentionally sought to go and upset anybody”. Farage subsequently put out a fresh denial: “I can tell you categorically that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, so long ago.”