One Birth, Two Worlds
In 1933, identical twins Jack Yufe and Oskar Stohr were born in Trinidad to a Jewish father and a Catholic mother. When their parents divorced six months later, the twins were separated. Oskar went to Germany with his mother, while Jack remained with his father.
From that moment, their lives diverged under the pressures of history. Oskar was raised in Nazi Germany, where he joined the Hitler Youth and absorbed its ideology. Jack identified as Jewish and later moved to Venezuela, where he lived with an aunt who had survived Dachau. Their environments shaped them into radically different individuals despite sharing the same DNA.
From Israel to Germany
Encouraged by his aunt, Jack moved to Israel at age 16 and joined the Israeli Navy, eventually becoming an officer. In 1954, he traveled to Germany to meet his twin for the first time since infancy. They were 21. When Jack arrived, Oskar noticed the Israeli tags on Jack’s luggage and asked him to hide them, suggesting he tell people he was from America instead.
Their communication was limited by language, and their ideological divide was evident. They ended the reunion with a handshake and parted ways, strangers bound only by biology. Jack settled in San Diego, where he spent the rest of his life.
Reunion Through Science
In 1979, Jack read about a twin study exploring the roles of nature and nurture and contacted the researchers. He hoped participation might also allow him and Oskar to reconnect. They met again at the Minneapolis airport and were surprised to find themselves wearing nearly identical clothes—white sports jackets, similar shirts, and wire-rimmed glasses.
Despite being raised apart, they discovered numerous similarities: both were stubborn, competitive, read books backward, sneezed loudly, and wore rubber bands around their wrists. Their gestures and walking styles were uncannily alike.
Unbridgeable Differences
Although they shared many traits, their views remained fundamentally opposed. They could not agree on topics like Israel or World War II.
Oskar’s habit of referring to German soldiers as “we” upset Jack. In a BBC documentary, Jack described their attempts to connect, but admitted that a deep rift persisted. The weight of their contrasting upbringings prevented any lasting bond. Oskar died in 1997. Jack passed away in 2015 at the age of 82.
They were identical twins—same face, same DNA—but raised to believe entirely different truths.
Jack Yufe grew up Jewish and became an Israeli naval officer.
Oskar Stohr, raised in Nazi Germany, joined the Hitler Youth.
When they met as adults, tensions flared…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/OUylSwqMop
— Detective Tiger's Stories (@TigerDetective) June 7, 2025