Malou: French Resistance Fighter

Ruth Kneppel was pregnant with her daughter Michèle when war broke out in 1939. As the German army and French police closed in, Ruth and her family hid in homes in Paris before fleeing to France’s free zone. Ruth joined the Resistance and engaged in undercover operations, posing as an Algerian Christian named ‘Malou’. She transported coded messages to operatives in hiding, smuggled revolvers to Resistance assassins and prepared political prisoners for jailbreak. Following liberation, the family returned to Paris where Ruth helped to care for Jewish orphans through the humanitarian organisation, OSE. Eventually, Ruth and Michele built a new life in Australia.