CursorinfoCulture07:12

Last Israeli Resident Honored as Righteous Among Nations Dies at 91

By Рами Мадрих

Translated & summarized from Cursorinfo by baba

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Russian · 6 newsrooms covering

Yaroslava Levitskaya, the last Israeli resident recognized as Righteous Among the Nations, died in Haifa at 91. She was honored for her childhood bravery during the Holocaust, smuggling aid into a ghetto and delivering food to hidden individuals. Levitskaya immigrated to Israel in 1995 and was recognized by Yad Vashem in 1989. Her story is featured in the children's book "Only Red Candies."

The story in 5 lines · by baba

Yaroslava Levitskaya, the last Israeli resident honored as Righteous Among the Nations, died in Haifa at age 91.
She was recognized for smuggling aid into a ghetto and delivering food to hidden Jews during the Holocaust.
Levitskaya immigrated to Israel in 1995 and lived in Haifa for over three decades.
She and her family were honored by Yad Vashem as Righteous Among the Nations in 1989.
Her childhood bravery is the subject of the children's book "Only Red Candies."

Last Israeli Resident Honored as Righteous Among Nations Dies at 91 — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

Yaroslava Levitskaya, the last individual residing in Israel recognized as Righteous Among the Nations, has passed away in Haifa at the age of 91. She died just two months shy of her 92nd birthday and had lived in Haifa for over three decades following her immigration to Israel in 1995. Levitskaya spent her final years at the Beit Gil Hazahav nursing home in the Kiryat Eliyahu neighborhood.

Born in Poland in 1935, Levitskaya's courageous actions began at age six during the Holocaust. Together with her mother and grandfather, she participated in saving Jews. Due to her young age, she was able to move unnoticed by guards, smuggling food and medicine into the ghetto in her school backpack. In 1943, when her family sheltered two fugitives, the young Levitskaya continued to risk her life by delivering provisions to a group hiding in a cellar two kilometers away.

In 1989, Yaroslava Levitskaya, her mother, and grandfather were officially honored as Righteous Among the Nations by Israel's Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Remembrance Authority. She made Aliyah and became an Israeli citizen in 1995, settling in Haifa.

Her childhood bravery is the subject of the children's book "Only Red Candies" by Mia Klinger-Cohen, which tells young readers about her courage. Momi Almog, Director of the Municipal Institute for Holocaust Studies in Haifa, remembered Levitskaya as a symbol of courage and humanity, stating her moral legacy will endure.