Two cousins who were separated 75 years ago by World War II reunited in Israel on Saturday.
Morris Sana, 87, and his cousin Simon Mairowitz, 85, grew up believing that the other died in a concentration camp in Europe during World War II, according to People magazine. The cousins were close friends before the Nazis invaded Romania in 1940, which forced both of their families to flee the country separately.
Sana’s niece and daughter connected with relatives several decades later on Facebook, and organized for Sana and Mairowitz to see each other again in Tel Aviv.
A video of their emotional reunion shows the two men hug and shed tears together.
Mairowitz said, “Good to see you too after all these years,” while holding Sana’s face in his hands as both men begin to cry. “Seventy-five years you waited.”
After Nazis invaded Romania during the Holocaust, these cousins were separated and thought they were both killed. Now, 75 years, they're seeing each other again for the first time. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/X7tElwMnSa
— People (@people) September 25, 2019
“I know it’s a long time,” continued Mairowitz, who now lives in the United Kingdom. “We’ve got each other now. And we can see each other.”
In the clip, Sana, who lives in Ra’anana, Israel, also told Mairowitz that he would often think about him after they were separated.
“I imagine you when you were a little boy,” he said.
