Vandals Kick Over Tombstones at Military Cemetery in France

Associated Press ^ | Jul 29, 2003 | AP

[New Horizon]

LILLE, France (AP) - Vandals knocked over 45 headstones at a military cemetery for British soldiers, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission said Tuesday. Two of the markers were destroyed at the Saint Aubert Cemetery, which is near the northern city of Cambrai and is the burial site of 435 soldiers killed in World War I, most of them British.

The headstones were believed to have been toppled Sunday evening, but police were still investigating, Peter Francis, spokesman for the War Graves Commission, said.

In April, graffiti denouncing the U.S.-led war in Iraq was scrawled on monuments at a World War I cemetery in Etaples, near Calais. This time, however, no political, racial or religious inscriptions were left, the commission said.

"It looks like a completely mindless act of vandalism," Francis said.

All military cemeteries in France are open to the public.

[CindyDawg]

If any Americans there, we need to bring them home.

[xtorpedoman]

can we declare France an evil empire?

[rudypoot]

And WE are the uncultured ones....

[Paul Atreides]

"It looks like a completely mindless act of vandalism," Francis said.

Yeah, right!

[FierceDraka]

The French are pigs, and don't deserve the freedom that was paid for with Anglo-American blood.

[Paul Atreides]

According to dimbulb actress, Kate Hudson, we are.

[mountaineer]

Story also posted here, with photo.

[theDentist]

A story I heard (can't be sure of it's truthfulness) is that when Lyndon Johnson was Senate Majority Leader he was visiting France. He met w/ De Gualle, who was ranting about America and Johnson waited until a lull in the whine-fest and said something like "As soon as I get back to the Senate I'm putting forward a bill to dig up every American soldier buried in France and bring him home." De Gualle almost had a stroke.

[RickGee]

There are vandals in all countries
What matters is what the French government does.

[the Deejay]

We should have "brought them home" at the time
they died. I just don't understand why the US
Government never did this. Now, our brave troops'
graves, are going to be vandalized. This is way
beyond disgraceful.

[Enterprise]

It is possible that French citizens did this of course. I would be looking to Islamic fanatics as the probable suspects here.

[Ronly Bonly Jones]

Actually Johnson asked his Secretary of State to ask DeGaulle if the 1968 "remove all Americans from France" order included the dead at Normandy. And yes, DeGaulle nearly had a stroke. As well he should have; it was as studied a diplomatic insult as one ally can send to another.

[xtorpedoman]

"What matters is what the French government does. "
lets hope they handle it better than the french gov(s) of ww2

[BostonianRightist]

" can we declare France an evil empire? "

we can and should. it's time to start bombing Paris. i can't wait to see the green/night vision screen of the bombing of the eiffel tower. we should affix some ICBMs to the statue of liberty and send it back.

(thank you for listening to my rant)

[Teacher317]

We saw this coming last year.

[Spunky]

"In April, graffiti denouncing the U.S.-led war in Iraq was scrawled on monuments at a World War I cemetery in Etaples, near Calais."

Here is the picture of that

The memorial at Etaples, near Boulogne on the Channel coast, was daubed in red paint with slogans including "Rosbeefs [British] go home", "Saddam will win and he will make you bleed" and "Dig up your rubbish, it is contaminating our soil".

Some 11,000 British servicemen and women are buried at the cemetery, most of whom died defending France in the first world war.

[xtorpedoman]

a possibillity to be sure......but we just gotta wonder in light of various trends going on in France, ya know?

[Burkeman1]

Don't be so hasty. There are plenty of French people who appreciate American sacrifices in both WWI and WWII. Remember that France has a large Muslem population of immigrants and they might be responsible for this.

[CindyDawg]

I don't think I'm being hasty at all. France showed her true colors over Iraq. Our fallen deserve better than this. We need to bring them home.