French village pays tribute to Belgian special forces on 80th anniversary of liberation
The village of Longny-au-Perche in France will pay tribute to the Belgian paratroopers who liberated it from German occupation on 14 and 15 August, the local authority has announced. Members of the Belgian special forces have been invited to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation.
In 1944, several members of the Fifth SAS Regiment, a Belgian parachute unit attached to the British Special Forces, mistakenly landed 10km from their objective in Normandy. They made contact with French resistance networks and carried out several intelligence operations and harassment of the occupying forces.
On 14 August, the Belgians arrived at Longny-au-Perche after the Germans had fled in a hurry. The following day, American troops reached the village. The events are described in the memoirs of Captain Gilbert Sadi Kirschen, a member of the SAS.
"The French remain very attached to their allies and liberators, and in particular our Belgian friends"
“We are one of the few communes in France to have had Belgian liberators,” the commune’s deputy mayor, Jean-Vincent du Lac, told Belga on Wednesday.
This is the second year that the Belgians have been invited to the commemorations. “The French remain very attached to their allies and liberators, and in particular our Belgian friends,” Du Lac said.
Alongside the Belgian soldiers, representatives of the American and Canadian embassies and the granddaughter of American General George S Patton have been invited. This year’s programme includes wreath-laying, exhibitions, a showing of the film The Longest Day and a reconstruction of an American camp.
An aerial show on 8 June 2024, marking 80 years since the launch of Operation Overlord, a vast military operation by Allied forces in Normandy, which turned the tide of World War II © PHOTO LOIC VENANCE / AFP
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