A month shy of his 114th birthday, Israel Kristal passed away. Kristal lived through both World War I and World War Ii. Kristal, who is also a Holocaust survivor, died this Friday. The man's grandson, Oren Kristal, said his grandfather had accomplished a lot in his life.
Oren said to The Associated Press that every year Israel Kristal lived was like a few more years for others. Last year, Kristal received a certificate Guinness World Records. He was certified as being the Oldest Man in the world.
Used to smuggle alcohol during World War I
Israel Kristal was born near the town of Zarnow, Poland.
He was born to an Orthodox Jewish family. Oren said when his grandfather was 12 years old, he was a booze smuggler's helper. Israel would smuggle alcohol between war lines, often running many miles back and forth in the snow. He did this barefooted, too.
Oren said Israel used to walk faster than him until he became very old. Israel would tell his grandson that if you didn't walk fast enough, then you'd get stuck on the frozen ground.
Wife and kids were killed in the Holocaust
Shortly after the First World War, Israel Kristal moved to Lodz. There he worked in his family's confectionery business. When the Nazis occupied Poland, Kristal was forced to remain in a ghetto and eventually he was sent to concentration camps, including Auschwitz.
Israel's first wife was killed in the Holocaust. His two children were also killed. During World War II, over five million Jews were murdered by the Nazis.
After World War II, Israel Kristen remarried. The woman he married was also a Holocaust survivor. He relocated to Israel with her in 1950, where he started a business and lived out his life.
In March 2016, at the age of 112, he received the title as being the world's oldest man.
Israel died in the city of Haifa. Once news got out about his death, condolences from around the world started to surface. The US Holocaust Museum took to Twitter and said the passing of Israel Kristal reminds people of the importance of learning from Holocaust survivors while they are still alive.
Yisrael Kristal's passing reminds us of the importance of learning from survivors while they are still with us. https://t.co/wzw2Pkvaud
— US Holocaust Museum (@HolocaustMuseum) August 11, 2017
The Anne Frank Center also Tweeted. They said they were mourning the passing of Israel Kristal. They added that "may his memory be a blessing".
We mourn the passing of Shoah survivor Yisrael Kristal, world's oldest man, at 113. May his memory be a blessing. https://t.co/hjIhysa5h2
— Anne Frank Center (@AnneFrankCenter) August 11, 2017
Oren described Israel as being a hardworking man. According to the Associated Press, he said he always had a lot of energy and was always doing something. He added that just a few weeks ago, Israel participated in a bar mitzvah for one of his grandson's.
