Eva Schloss: 'Why I took Austrian citizenship aged 92'

By Sam Francis
BBC News, London

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Eva SchlossIMAGE COPYRIGHTCHRISTOPHER GUNSON
image captionEva Schloss says she plans to put her newly awarded Medal for Services to the Republic of Austria "next to my English MBE in my display cabinet"

Eva Schloss fled Austria to escape persecution by the Nazis, but at the age of 92 has again become a citizen of the country of her birth.

Mrs Schloss, who has lived in London for 70 years, has dedicated her life to making sure people never forget what happened during the Holocaust - one of its millions of victims was her friend and stepsister, Anne Frank. She explains why she was finally ready to become an Austrian once more.

The day after Nazi Germany annexed Austria, Eva Geiringer's 12-year-old brother Heinz was subjected to an anti-Semitic assault by his former friends.

"Blood was streaming from his face and his clothes were all torn," she remembers.