Top Law Officer Demands Reform UK Leader to Apologise Over Claimed Antisemitic and Racist Behaviour.

The United Kingdom's attorney general, Richard Hermer, has demanded Nigel Farage to apologise to school contemporaries who allege he racially abused them during their time at school.

Hermer stated that Farage had "obviously deeply hurt" many people, judging by their accounts of his past behaviour. He noted that the leader's "shifting" denials had been unconvincing.

“In his defensive responses to valid inquiries, not once has Farage actually condemned antisemitism,” Hermer stated to a news outlet.

New Allegations Surface

A published report last month outlined the accounts of several ex-pupils of Farage from Dulwich College.

One, a former pupil, recalled that a teenage Farage "would sidle up to 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 gas showers”.

Another pupil from an ethnic minority claimed that when he was roughly nine years old, he was similarly targeted by a older Farage.

“He walked up to a pupil flanked by two equally tall mates and targeted anyone looking ‘unusual’,” the person said. “That happened to me on three separate times; inquiring where I was from, and pointing away, saying: ‘That’s the way back,’ to wherever you said you were from.”

Since then, more people have stepped forward; approximately twenty people have now stated they were either subject to or witnesses to deeply offensive actions by Farage.

The behaviour they outlined span the period when Farage was aged 13 to 18.

Changing Stories

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

Commentators have highlighted that Farage has neglected to condemn antisemitism and other forms of racism outright in his responses.

They also reference his reluctance to discipline a party member, Sarah Pochin, after she made remarks about the number of ethnic minorities she saw in adverts. She later apologised for the remarks.

“His constantly changing story about his behaviour to his peers [is] unconvincing, to say the least,” Hermer said.

He added: “Suggesting that 20 people have somehow forgotten the same things about his offensive behaviour simply lacks credibility."

Call for Leadership

“If he wants to be seen as a serious contender for prime minister, he urgently needs address the fears of the Jewish people, and say sorry to the numerous individuals he has clearly deeply hurt by his behaviour,” Hermer said.

“Prejudice in all its forms is completely opposed to the principles of this country and we must not permit it to ever become normalised in politics.”

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

“It is very telling how little he has to say, and the precisely drafted words that both you and I would identify as being written in a specific manner to say something, but also dodge the issue,” she said.

Formal Denials and Subsequent Comments

In lawyers' communications before the release of the report, Farage’s legal team claimed that “the allegation that Mr Farage ever was involved in, approved of, or led this behaviour is completely refuted”.

Farage later altered his position in an appearance, stating: “Did I say things decades ago that you could interpret as being teenage humour, you could interpret in a contemporary context today in some sort of way? Yes.”

He added that he had “never directly sought to go and hurt anybody”. Farage afterwards put out a new statement: “I can tell you definitely that I did not say the things that have been reported when I was 13, nearly 50 years ago.”