We Would Meet After the War: The Story of Naftali Fürst

Naftali (Juraj) Fürst was born in 1932 in Bratislava, Slovakia (then Czechoslovakia) to Margit and Artur. He had one older brother, Shmuel (Peter). After the Slovak State was declared and anti-Jewish measures were implemented, the family went into hiding but were caught. In 1942 they were interned in the Sered concentration camp. In 1944, they managed to escape to Piešťany. By then the Germans had entered and occupied Slovakia. The family members were caught once again and were reinterned in Sered, which came under German command. In November 1944 the family was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau where the children were separated from their parents. They were sent to the Budy subcamp and survived a "death march" to Buchenwald. It was there that they were liberated. After the war they were reunited with their parents who had survived as well. They eventually emigrated to Israel. Naftali worked as a photographer, driving instructor and manager before he retired. Today he lives in Haifa, is the father of artist Ronit Fürst and has four grandchildren.

[@angeladutchlady6464]

Dear Naftali, thanks so much for telling your story!! I watched and listened with open mouth to what you told. 2 siblings, so young had to endure such horrible things. Your story will always stay in my mind and what you just told will never be forgotten. I can imagine you cannot forgive. How on earth to forgive what happened to so many young kids, young parents and many many more. Your story touched my heart , Thanks again for sharing.

[@brendalandes1813]

What a wonderful human being. We shall never forget.

[@patmurphy389]

Thank you for sharing your story Naftali! Your story will not be forgotten, never!

[@biendereviere]

What a beautifully told story Naftali! I’m so happy your family reunited after the war ; I grew up with stories of my grandfather having to hide for 5 yrs for the Gestapo bc he escaped the factory where he was a forced Belgian labourer - he was so severely traumatised that even in the 60s when my father was born he would hide way in the cellar bc he heard a police car in the streets and he thought it was still the Germans looking to execute the poor man… He lost all his friends by executions bc they where in the Resistance; I still have all their documents and I’ll keep them safe all my life and tell my younger family members when they’re old enough to understand what happened so the horrors of the Third Reich will never be forgotten and so that we can try to prevent similar things to happen in the future ❤🤞🏻🍀☮️

[@harared831]

Wow, what a story. There could not be that many families that reunited like yours after going thru hell in the camps. My daughter, 10 years old told me that she has been learning about ww2 at school the last weeks and about what happened to the jewish people. It`s important to remember what happened so it will not happen again. Thanks for sharing your story.

[@IRosamelia]

Against all odds his family survived and thrived; they were able to make it to the promised land. Anyone to whom life is cruel is never alone. God is with you always!

[@Kat-pe3gq]

It’s almost like a fever dream, except for it happened and he remembers every minute of it. I am left speechless

[@itstuff4744]

Thank you for sharing your terrible story. I am under shock of course and I feel so sad for the horrible death million of these poor innocent children had to face because of Nazis’ madness. My own wonderful mother was freed at the age of 18 from the camp where she spent 4 terrible years. Because she was very weak, she was taken care of by the British Red Cross who saved her life. All the rest of her life she kept telling me : « Have several passports and speak several languages so that it will be easier for you to run away, because you see they will come back one day, I am sure of that». She never felt completely secured for the rest of her life » she passed away without knowing it was the end for her because she had Alzheimer. And at last she was not scared anymore.

[@yaelelerner3544]

Great testimony. ’"GIVE VOICE TO THE CHILDREN WHO DO NOT HAVE MOUTH". A noble and true duty. Thanks for sharing. Then, so far, among hundreds and hundreds, I have not met anyone who met parents and brother after the camps. In your tragedy, you got at least a great blessing, even if you don’t believe.

[@adellaidemikova]

B”H you all survived, that is amazing!!

[@linmorell1813]

It’s incredible that the family survived

[@nicolesurink3515]

Tank you for sharing your story,Respect,we never forget.Greetings From the Netherlands

[@rositahuff4858]

…I hope for those who did these terrible things to innocent people ….there is a place call Hell!

[@toggler6985]

Thank you for relaying that information and told with great integrity.

[@jackgilley7425]

Amazing story of luck and survival in a world full of evil but also some good. I was taught why there was, and is, evil and it makes some sense to me because I've never been given a better explanation. Isn't it strange how we can have faith, hope and love and it cannot be taken from us without our consent. But it's a hard road.

[@annebalderston2520]

We live in a broken world but we have a choice - will we listen to the voice of evil or the voice of good (God).

[@53evi]

Vielen Dank ,Herr Fürst🙂

[@alicekaufmann7040]

Thank you for this invaluable testimony! It made me wonder what happened to Mr. Fürst's Omama... 😞

[@englishlearningwithnandita]

Great to know you all survived.

[@leontinaleal3251]

You are the best of Humanity thank you for tell us . That should't happen again ever.✌️💓

[@annjalahfuentez7697]

im just so overwhelmed in the struggle and hardship this family with threw,as well as million others ,but for a whole family to survive is just amazing ,,,loved this story very much ...

[@seemarajderkar3019]

'We would meet after the war'...... what a touching life story narrated by World War 2 survivor, Nuftali Furst!! It was so very pleasant, to know that the Furst family did meet after the war in 1945 after facing innumerable hardships !! If Nuftali is still around, he will be 91 now. My warm, sincere regards to Nuftali and his family. Special mention..... Credit goes to YAD VASHEM for their simply wonderful recreation and restoration for posterity, of real stories of survivors and their memories through these videos. Lovely video. Thanks YAD VASHEM !!🙏

[@rutbrea8796]

I just can't understand the hatred against the Jewish people. Why? What did they ever do to them? And is still going on, the same hatred against a people.

[@susanborkenhagen58]

Religion. None of this would have happened if there were never any religions or the thought of a "god". That ia a 100% human flaw. Animals don't kill due to religious beliefs, they kill to survive. Religions the cause of most human conflicts along with greed/$$$. Humans suck!!!!!

[@barbelgeomuc1349]

Vielen Dank, dass Sie Ihre Geschichte erzählen.

[@honeybeebadger]

Thank you your story will be preserved for generations 🙏🏻

[@mommazed1]

You survived yes, but you were also saved. God did hear your prayers. Thanks for sharing your story

[@VanJA2102]

I find it fascinating that he still speaks German instead of Slovakian after everything that happened to him.

[@mayyakravitz7892]

It’s not German, he speaks Yiddish language

[@VanJA2102]

@@mayyakravitz7892 na, German is my mother tongue and he speaks German. He even said so at the end. I do understand a lot of Yiddish but I wouldn't have been able to have understand everything if he was speaking Yiddish.

[@NomenFugazi]

@@mayyakravitz7892It is German,not Yiddish,very good german at that.

[@Tali5899]

Van Essa. It's peculiar that Jews speak Yiddish at all any more after what the Germans did,since its so similar.

[@user-ez4jy6jj4g]

@@Tali5899they spook Yiddish long before the holocaust; please think before commenting

[@user-cc1iu2cd9x]

Thank You …

[@JoeHarkinsHimself]

a powerful indictment of evil. never again.

[@adelalax3553]

You were saved, because you are alive to tell your story, not by human hand but by God's will you're saved!

[@user-ez4jy6jj4g]

Please where is a god if he lets these things happen, think!

[@albertobalbas2530]

Naftali, Sie haben überlebt mit viele Familie! Persönlich schaue ich nicht zu oft Vad Yashem Sendungen weil sehr traurig sind. Aber die Hoffnung für die Zukunft nachdem ihre Geschichte macht mich glücklich!!! 🎉Sie sagen sehr ernst das Sie die Glauben im Gott verloren haben!! Tut es ihnen Leid. Sie waren so erst und traurig, wenn Sie es erzählen haben. Wer nicht schuldig ist? Es ist wichtig die Erinnerung halten um auf für die Zukunft aufzupassen. Wir werden die Vergangenheit nicht einfach vergessen. 😢 Grüße aus Spanien ❤

[@-amagharibikudhihirsha7968]

Thank you😘

[@sallymay3643]

🕎 They never lost their faith ✡️ ✌️🇺🇸

[@Meiz28]

❤️❤️❤️❤️👍👍👍👍

[@roberte5057]

May I ask how you kept the photos?

[@judymckee5992]

What the enemy meant for evil God turned it for good. It is kind of disgusting to see the same evil rising up in. Ukraine. Calling bad good and good bad , has mess up a lot of people's mind.

[@EdwardPCampbell]

Newsflash: It’s the grandchildren of the closet Nazis who are doing the same atrocities in Ukraine as happened 80 years ago by the Waffen SS, Gestapo and Einsatzgruppen. Only this time it’s Stalin’s grandchildren following in his genocidal footsteps. Putin sees himself as the new Stalin, with Kadyrov and the Wagner Group as the new Nazis.

[@adelalax3553]

Payback is awful!

[@helenh493]

I agree with Angela's message (below). We are only human. Its near impossible to forgive all those who was a part of such inhumane actions.. physical mental and emotional torture, starvation, and murder of millions, including of your own family and friends. It was tragic and horrendous to imagine as adults, surviving everything. But, as children, young boys going through everything, including watching friends being taken away to be murdered, and no one but each other to understand how you're feeling (fear, grief, and no doubt Hate). Its a Wonder that any child and teenager came through the other end of this "man-made- Hell", and Whole! On a lighter note, how Lucky Naftali was to not kill himself, as he was thinking, as his immediate family (father, mother and brother) all survived. Yes, its very sad and tragic that his extended family and close friends hadn't all survived, but his parents & sibling and he did. Also, he shouldn't blame God, our higher deity can only do so much, by leading us on the right path. Some of you will not believe what other peoples religions believe in, like angels and Jesus, but my way of believing and deciphering is God sends 'his own' (heavenly helpers) to help keep us on the right path, even when its hard to, (like a Father does with unruly children), if we're wanting to or not. Unfortunately, he gave us CHOICE. With this 'choice' he gave us a higher caliber of brain (so to speak), than animals. But some people with their higher thinking get greedy, power hungry, and stray from this path, and so what isn't of our natural fiber (what he made us for), they become "something else". Most who become power Crazed.. end up Crazy. They either get mutiny and killed off or kill themselves. Its written in history books. One other lighter thought... Naftali, I noticed has the sweetest, beguiling smile, from his youngest years pictures into his older years. It is his Mothers smile, and it reaches up to his shining eyes.

[@joslynandcarltonramsubhag1836]

Interesting story! Did the other brother gave his own story also?

[@Tali5899]

Beautiful children. I cannot begin to imagine what went through nazi minds when they faced beautiful children and killed or tortured them. Never forgive,never forget.

[@dublinbirdhanson1232]

Thank you for telling your story. I can not really know how much you suffered. Please ask God to help you to believe in him again. He loves you. His Son Jesus died for your sins and has comfort for your deep pain.

[@thanksnelyatikunova1676]

Zaer shayner idish

[@erzonca558]

It's not Yiddish. He speaks basic German. Yiddish is very different and 20-30% Hebrew especially words like family, house, everyday adjectives... so if you heard Yiddish once, you would know the difference with German. My grandparents spoke both German and Yiddish. From far you would hear the melody of each one. Yiddish is beautiful, smooth and soft.

[@sehadakolenovic6939]

God bless you and your family! Never forget and never forgive the Holocaust! May all the Holocaust victims rest in peace! And God bless the State of Israel!!!

[@adelalax3553]

Your God the one you were cursing came down from heaven to forgive your sins Mr Fürst Jesus Christ forgave the Romans for killing him because of us and you, forgiveness is not for them, it's for you, your peace. Jesus Christ is lord and your creator forgive and repent to Jehovah your God in the Torah, the one who kept you alive to tell your story. Blessings. Nepthaly