An Albanian Muslim man whose house was destroyed in an earthquake that hit Albania last month will have it rebuilt by a Holocaust commemoration group.
Muhamet Bicaku, 83, lost his home in the 6.4 magnitude earthquake - the most powerful in decades - that struck Albania in November, claiming dozens of lives.
During the Holocaust, Bicaku’s father Mefail and older brother Njazi sheltered about 20 Jewish families from the Italian and German occupation forces in Qarrishte, a town located about 50 miles east of the capital Tirana.
In honor of Mefail's deeds, the Polish-based Jewish organization From the Depths has so far raised $10,000 to restore Bickau's house.
According to the group’s founder, Jonny Daniels, who visited Albania as part of a humanitarian mission following the earthquake, the total cost for rebuilding the house will be approximately $45,000, a large sum which Daniels believe they will be able to raise.
Muhamet Bicaku, who was 5 when his father began harboring Jewish refugees, is now living in crowded conditions in the home of one his children.
In 2007, he received the Anti-Defamation League's Courage to Care Award on behalf of his family.
His father and brother were recognized in 1996 by Israel as Righteous Among the Nations, a title awarded to non-Jews who endangered their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.