World War 14-18: crosses vandalized at the national necropolis of Riche (57), housing the remains of many French soldiers
Crosses were damaged at the national cemetery in Riche, Moselle, reports Le Républicain Lorrain . A company commissioned by the National Office for Veterans (ONAC) discovered the three damaged and broken crosses on Friday. Empty cans and bottles littered the ground next to them. (…)
(…) an act of vandalism denounced by the Minister Delegate for Remembrance and Veterans Affairs, Patricia Mirallès. “This site, listed by UNESCO and classified as a historic monument, is at the heart of the memory of the Great War. Just days before the commemoration of the Battle of Morhange, this despicable act is particularly serious,” added Minister Patricia Mirallès, specifying that a complaint will be filed.
Christian Stinco, the mayor of Morhange, a town located a few kilometers from the necropolis, expressed his “deep indignation” and “immense anger” in a message published on Facebook. “I call for everything possible to be done to ensure that the perpetrators of these irresponsible and cowardly actions are quickly identified and punished with the utmost firmness,” the elected official demanded, recalling that “the memory of our dead must remain sacred.”
Inaugurated in 1924, the Riche National Cemetery houses the remains of nearly 2,500 French soldiers who died in August 1914 during the Battle of the Frontiers. An investigation was opened following these events.
Fdesouche
