Last-known Sobibor death camp survivor dies in Ukraine

BERLIN – Arkady Waispapir, the last known survivor of the Nazis' Sobibor death camp, has died in Ukraine. He was 96.

The Berlin-based Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe said Monday that Waispapir died Jan. 11 in Kiev.

Born in southern Ukraine, Waispapir was captured by the Germans while serving in the Soviet Army and shipped to Sobibor because he was Jewish.

He was one of a few inmates spared immediate death and instead ordered to a work detail.

The memorial says he was one of eight prisoners who organized the 1943 uprising in the camp, which allowed more than 200 prisoners to escape. Waispapir was one of 47 escapees who survived the war.

Waispapir lived and worked in eastern Ukraine until retiring in 1994 and moving to Kiev.