A family has been reunited after a local press website carried an interview with a former World War II internee.

Last month iomtoday.co.uk, the companion site to the Isle of Man Newspapers titles the Examiner, Independent and Courier, carried a video interview with 80-year-old Herbert Levy.

Mr Levy escaped Berlin from the Nazis and had been imprisoned in Port Erin, on the Isle of Man, during the Second World War.

He later settled in London, becoming a British citizen, and was visiting the island from the capital to open an exhibition about Anne Frank as part of his role with the Anne Frank Trust.

After the video had been posted online, a 19-year-old woman called Noa Codish-Dotan emailed the Johnston Press weeklies, saying she believed Mr Levy was her grandfather’s cousin.

The family had lost touch several years ago after Noa’s grandmother Batya died.

Mr Levy said: “The internet is truly amazing. An article written on the Isle of Man is immediately read in Israel and, hey presto, a family is reunited.

“You have really come up trumps in putting us into contact with family for whom we no longer had a current address once the grandmother had died.

“We are very happy to be back in touch with the next generation and thank you very much for your part in making this possible.

“What a wonderful thing to happen through the internet. We are in regular e-mail contact and are very happy to have resumed this family relationship.”

Reporter Lottie Ray, who conducted the video interview, told HTFP: “It’s fairly rare to receive positive feedback about stories you write.

“So it feels pretty good to be able to help out a family in such a big way as this and get sincerely thanked for it too.

“Our paper is very proud that the story reached someone in Israel and had such an effect on so many people’s lives.”