Britain’s shame: Terrified Holocaust survivor left fearing for his life

A Holocaust survivor rescued by ­Brit­­ain has told how the pro-Palestinian marches have left him fearing for his life for the first time since fleeing the Nazis.

He said the brewing hatred which has infected swathes of the country brought back vivid memories of the persecution he faced as a child in Germany.

Now aged 93 and living in the north in England, he declared: “I never thought I would see this darkness return.”

The man was too frightened to give his name, saying that ever since the October 7 massacre by Hamas in Israel he has feared for his and his family’s safety.

But while the survivor, who was rescued as a child by the Kindertransport network, felt forced to stay anonymous, thousands took to the streets across Britain to gleefully condemn Israel. The marches – which took place in cities including London, Manchester, Notting­­ham and Newcastle – came after the leader of the Hezbollah terror group praised the protesters.

A day of shame for the UK saw:

● The Cenotaph cordoned off as Home Secretary Suella Braverman warned anybody vandalising it would be jailed;

● Chants of “Smash the Zionist settler state” in a crowded tube train

● Posters showing Hamas bulldozers breaking through security fences ahead of the slaughter of 1,400 innocents;

● A protester in Kensington saying the only path to peace is if “Israel is torn down from the ground up”;

● One shocked expert say parts of the country are now no-go areas for the Jewish community, adding: “This is London in 2023 – we are not talking about Berlin in 1936.”

Fears are now growing that next week’s march, set for Armistice Day on November 11, will also ruin Rem­embrance Day on Sunday.

The Holocaust survivor said that he had planned to offer a tribute to the fallen this week but now felt that he had to stay anonymous.

He was saved from Nazi Berlin in 1939 when Britain took in nearly 10,000 Jewish children. He said: “I was a child when my mother put me and my brother on one of the last trains.

“Later, we discovered what happened to those who remained – horrendous things which the world vowed would never be repeated.

“Now we see it happening again. Thousands of people are marching openly in this country to support the elimination of Jews once more. Because that is what ‘from the river to sea’ means.

“I never thought I would see this darkness return, certainly not in Britain which has always been so tolerant to all faiths. But I have seen an increase of anti-semitism where I live over the past three weeks, and I am becoming increasingly concerned about my family’s safety.”

Traditionally, Jewish veterans have marked Remem­­brance Sunday as well as holding their own event the following week.

But Dan Millan, chair of the Greater Manchester branch of AJEX, the Jewish military association, questioned whether the latter might go ahead.

The Royal Signals and Merchant Navy veteran said: “When you see the huge pro-Palestinian protests, it is like a tidal wave no one can stop. We risk being a small Jewish island in Whitehall, sandwiched by thousands of Palestinians and their Muslim supporters, many of whom would see us eliminated.”

Britain’s Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said that the marchers are “standing alongside extremists” and warned it is “a stain on our common humanity that so many seem to have lost sight to the moral distance between Hamas and Israel”. March organisers have confirmed protests will continue every weekend until a ceasefire is called by Israel.

They claim they have no plans to disrupt Saturday’s 11am silence, and their route will avoid the Cenotaph.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “I have been clear that these are hate marches. The chanting of jihad is despicable. And I don’t see how any decent ­person or how the vast majority of the British people can find that to be acceptable behaviour. It’s sickening.” She has said that she considers the “From the river to the sea” chant as potentially anti-semitic. Yesterday, one protester used a megaphone to tell a crowd: “River to the sea means there is no Israel, because there can be no peace while there is an Israel. The only way there can be peace is if Israel is torn down from the ground up.”

The British Transport Police is also investigating the repeated chanting of “smash the Zionist settler state” by a group on a crowded tube.

Elsewhere on the London march, leaflets were handed out praising “the breakout by Hamas fighters from Gaza on October 7 and the humiliation of the Israeli military”.

At the Trafalgar Square rally a woman held a placard showing the Star of David being thrown into a dustbin, with the slogan: “Let’s keep the world clean.”

Fake bloodied babies, wrapped in cloth, were laid out besides the fountains.

A total of 11 arrests were made, according to the Met Police, and last night officers were given the authority to require people in Westminster to remove any item being used to conceal their identity.

Professor Ian Acheson, senior adviser to the Counter Extremism Project, said: “Jewish people are saying protest Saturdays have made central London a no-go zone.

“This is London in 2023. We are not talking about Berlin in 1936.”