The village of Oradour-Sur-Glane in France was the site of the biggest massacre perpetrated by the diabolical Nazi regime in France during their occupation of the country. As many as 642 people were burned to death by the SS Das Reich division of the German army on June 10, 1944, just a few days after the D-Day landings by allied forces in Normandy.
A memorial honouring the victims was erected in the village and while a whole new habitation has grown up, the damaged edifices of the village have been kept intact to remind people of the horrors of the period. Unfortunately, some people, living in a fantasy world where they imagine that the Nazis didn't perpetrate the crimes they are accused of, targeted the memorial and painted objectionable graffiti on it.
The wall which stands at the entrance to the memorial had the word 'lie' written on it along with several other messages which deny that the Holocaust and other crimes against humanity committed by the Third Reich ever took place. The vandals also wrote 'Reynouard is right', a reference to a well-known Holocaust denier and neo-Nazi Vincent Reynouard. Equally offensive was the act of crossing the word 'martyr' embossed on the wall.
Condemnation of the act
This act of disrespect to the victims of the Nazi massacre has been roundly condemned by the top leaders of France. Strict action has been promised against the culprits who are yet to be identified. "Shame on those who did this. All will be done to find and judge those who committed these sacrilegious acts," Justice Minister of France Eric Dupond-Moretti stated on Twitter.
Even Prime Minister Jean Castex said that the act of vandalization "dirties the memory of our martyrs." France was under Nazi control for nearly five years during the Second World War. The landings in Normandy were the beginning of the pushback by allied forces that eventually led to the liberation of the country.
The massacre in Oradour-Sur-Glane is believed to be an act of retribution by the German Army after one of their soldiers was captured by French Resistance, a force set up to fight the occupying army. The entire population of the village was pushed into a church and barn before the Germans set the whole place ablaze. One wonders why any proud French person wouldn't like to respect the memories of the unfortunate victims.
