Shlomo Perel (Solomon Perel) was a Jewish teenager in Germany during the rise of Hitler and Nazism. After escaping to the Soviet Union and destroying his identification papers, Shlomo transformed himself into dedicated Nazi Josef “Jupp” Perjell. It wasn’t until the war’s end and his immigration to British Mandate Palestine that Josef would begin the lifelong journey of returning to his Jewish identity as Shlomo.

00:00 Intro
00:27 Shlomo Perel's childhood
00:46 The rise of Hitler and Nazism
01:12 The start of WW2
01:32 The state of Polish Jewry
01:52 The trek to eastern Poland under Soviet control
02:57 Life in a Bialystok orphanage
03:08 German invasion of Bialystok
03:40 Lies about Jewish identity
04:21 Becoming a Nazi
05:04 Shlomo Perel or Josef Perjell?
05:27 Fellow Nazi discovers his ruse
06:07 Adoption by Nazi commander
06:55 The Hitler Youth school
07:17 Real Nazi pride
07:56 Girlfriend's mother discovers his ruse
08:31 Travel to Lodz ghetto
09:10 Fighting on the front
09:42 Return to his Jewish identity
11:01 Immigration to the British Mandate of Palestine
11:11 Fighting in the 1948 War of Independence and reuniting with brothers
11:25 Writing his life story
11:32 Admitting truth to former Hitler Youth friends
11:44 Education and acceptance from former Nazis
12:18 Opposing identities
13:03 Survival at the expense of identity

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Image and footage credits:
JOURNEYS
Adobe Stock Images
ArtGrid
British Pathé
Special Broadcasting Service
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
TimelinesTV
PublicResourceOrg
Associated Press
Getty Images
Jewish Family and Children’s Services Holocaust Center
Imperial War Museums
Yad Vashem
Henryk Ross/ Art Gallery of Ontario
CC Film
Les films du losange
GTV Docs LTD
Smithsonian Channel
Global Look Press
WikiCommons
Discovery UK
World War Footage
Chris Collingridge
Rolf Hayo
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Executive Producer:
— Barry Skolnick
Co-Executive Producer:
— Shmuel Katz
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Translation credits:
Portuguese: Saymon Pires, www.livrariasafra.com.br, @safralivraria

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