Young Moshe's Diary facts for kids

Moshe Ze'ev Flinker was a young Jewish boy. He was born in The Hague, a city in the Netherlands, on October 9, 1926. Sadly, he was killed by the Nazi regime in 1944. This happened in a place called Bergen Belsen. Moshe's family tried to escape the Nazis. They moved from the Netherlands to Belgium. But they were arrested there in 1944. Moshe and his parents were sent to Auschwitz. They were murdered there. Moshe is remembered because he wrote a secret diary.

Who Was Moshe Flinker?

Moshe Ze'ev Flinker was born in 1926. His family lived in The Hague, Netherlands. His father, Eliezer Noah Flinker, was from Poland. He became a very successful businessman. Moshe was a Jewish youth.

A Difficult Time in Europe

In 1940, a big war started. It was called World War II. The Nazi regime took over the Netherlands. The Nazis were a political group. They were led by Adolf Hitler. They wanted to harm Jewish people. They started to arrest Jews. Moshe's family knew they were in danger. They left The Hague. They moved to Belgium to try and stay safe. They lived in Brussels, Belgium, for some time. But in 1944, they were found. The Gestapo arrested them. The Gestapo was the secret police of the Nazis.

Moshe's Secret Diary

Moshe started writing a diary in 1941. He wrote about his thoughts and feelings. He also wrote about what was happening around him. This diary became very important. It tells us about the challenges Jewish people faced. It shows their spiritual struggles during World War II.

What Was the Diary About?

Moshe wrote his diary in Hebrew. He wrote about his hopes and fears. He also wrote about his faith. He wanted to understand why these terrible things were happening. His diary helps us understand history. It shows us what it was like to live during that time.

The Diary's Journey

Moshe's diary was saved by his brothers and sisters. After the war, it was published. Yad Vashem published it in Hebrew in 1958. Yad Vashem is a special place. It remembers the Holocaust. An English version came out in 1965. It was called Young Moshe's Diary. It had a subtitle: The spiritual torment of a Jewish boy in Nazi Europe. A second English edition was printed in 1971. The diary was also translated into Yiddish and German.