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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Hanni Levy, who survived Holocaust in Berlin hideout, dies

In this Jan. 1, 2018 photo shows Holocaust survivor Hanni Levy at an extraordinary party convention in Hanover, Germany. Levy died at the age of 95 years. (Julian Stratenschulte/dpa / Associated Press)
Associated Press

BERLIN – Hanni Levy, who survived the Holocaust hiding out in Berlin, has died. She was 95.

Claus Raefle, a German movie director who knew Levy, said Wednesday that Levy’s family informed him she had died overnight at her home in Paris. Her death was first reported by Jewish weekly Juedische Allgemeine.

Raefle’s 2017 film “The Invisibles” tells the story of four Jews, including Levy, trying to avoid deportation in the capital of Nazi Germany.

Born Hanni Wei–enberg in 1924, Levy later recounted how she colored her hair blond and assumed the name Hannelore Winkler to evade suspicion. With the Nazis searching for her, Levy managed to find shelter with non-Jewish Berliners who Israel honored after the war as Righteous Among the Nations.

About 1,700 Jews survived the Holocaust in Berlin.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said the German leader was mourning Levy, an “impressive woman” whom she met last year.

“The story of her life moved many people,” Seibert tweeted.