This is a photograph of Hani Motiljo that was taken on July 17, 1928 when Hani was seven years old. Hani lived in Pristina, Yugoslavia (present-day Kosovo) with her parents and sister. In the photograph, Hani is wearing a traditional Yugoslavian costume which includes a long-sleeved dress with a wide belt and a short vest. Hani is wearing a lace and bow-trimmed hat and necklaces and is sitting on a balustrade, holding a parasol.
Hani was killed along with her mother and sister in the Djakovo concentration camp in 1941. After the war, her father, Leon Motiljo, remarried and had two children. He named his daughter, who was born in 1948, Hanika, in memory of her sister, Hani. Leon moved to Israel with his mother, wife, and children. This photograph was given to Centropa by Hani’s cousin – Hana Gasic. Hana Gasic’s family was from Sarajevo, then in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, today part of Bosnia-Herzegovina. They spoke both Serbo-Croatian and Ladino. Hana’s grandmother hid in Sarajevo during World War II, thanks to the protection of non-Jewish neighbours and employers and immigrated to Israel after the war with two of her sons. Hana’s father, a third son, remained in Yugoslavia, concerned that he wouldn’t be able to make a living in Israel. Both Hana’s mother and father came from traditional Jewish families of modest financial means. They were married in both civil and religious ceremonies. After the war, the rest of the family continued to live in Sarajevo and were very involved in the local community. Hana's father was an active member of the synagogue. They had a mezuzah on the entrance to their apartment, and Rabbi Menahem Roman, the last rabbi of Sarajevo, circumcised Hana’s younger brother. They kept Shabbat, and Hana vividly relates her experiences of the Jewish festivals, especially listening to the shofar and the festive meal on Purim. She remembers her parents attending the annual memorial services in the Croatian concentration camps. Hana met her husband at a Jewish day camp and moved with him to Belgrade, where her two children were born.
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Jewish Community of Kosovo – Jews first arrived in Kosovo in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, fleeing from persecution in Spain and Portugal. Kosovo was under Ottoman rule at the time and Sultan Bayezid II welcomed Jews into the Empire. As a result of the Balkan War (1912–1913), Kosovo became part of Yugoslavia, with only around 500 Jews living in area which is now Kosovo. In 1941, Yugoslavia surrendered to Italy and Kosovo became part of Albania. In 1943, after Italy surrendered to the Allies, Kosovo was controlled by Nazi Germany. In 1944, Kosovo returned to Yugoslavian control. Before the war, 1,700 Jews lived in Kosovo; only half survived the Holocaust. It is estimated that 200 Jews from Kosovo were killed in concentration camps, including the Djakovo concentration camp. Most of the survivors from Kosovo moved to Israel after the war. Today there are only about 50 Jews living in Kosovo.
