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.

[Coop]

The headstones were believed to have been toppled Sunday evening

On Monday morning Jacques Chiraq was sporting a cast on his right leg, below the knee. No reason was given for the plaster legwear.

[Burkeman1]

LOL. Kinda like Clinton's "fall" at Greg Normans house when he hurt his knee.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

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

When DeGaulle ordered U.S. troops to leave France in 1958, Eisenhower had his Secretary of State, Dean Acheson, pointedly ask the French ambassador if he wanted us to take the 60,000 buried there as well. (We should have seized the opportunity.) The French government did not respond.

[Roughneck]

The French need to "get theirs" and soon.

They've got it coming . . .and I want to see it.

Tourism down 80%. We need to make it worse, I want to see every one of them Screaming for mercy.

[CindyDawg]

That many huh? Is there a list somewhere where families can see if they have kin there and put pressure on the military to bring them home?

[Highest Authority]

Are there any french cemetaries here in the U.S. where we can return the favor?

[schaketo]

Just in case you would like to drop some of our ex-allies a postcard about how we feel about them in America – Have fun.

French President Jacques Chirac
Monsieur Le President de la Republique
Palais de l'Elysee
55, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore
75008 Paris
FRANCE

Or:

Email: President of the Republic of France Jacques Chirac:
http://www.elysee.fr/ang/ecrire/mail.htm

Email: French Embassy:
http://www.info-france-usa.org/contactus.asp

[brooklin]

Very classy people. It makes my heart proud.

[Steely Glint]

So they fought and died...for what? To save the great-grandparents of the vandals who destroyed their graves?

The next time France needs help tell them to call Brussels.

[schaketo]

1. french President Jacques Chirac, personally helped Iraq begin its nuclear program.
2. france assisted China in shipping raw materials for chemical weapons to Iraq through Syria.
3. french security services helped suppress opposition groups seeking to depose Saddam Hussein.
4. The french had supplied Iraq with precision switches for nuclear weapons.
5. french companies had resupplied Iraq with spare parts for fighter jets on the eve of the March 2003 invasion. Intelligence reports indicated that Iraq was able to obtain French military spare parts for its Mirage jets and Gazelle attack helicopters in violation of U.N. sanctions.
6. The french helped Iraqi officials escape U.S. capture by issuing them EU passports. The passports allowed the Iraqis to evade detection by U.S. military and intelligence agencies because they were EU travel documents.
7. Intelligence officials said France attempted to conclude an oil deal with Saddam's government days before U.S. military action began March 19.
8. french anti-aircraft weapons smuggled into Iraq prior to the war, the Roland 3 batteries, and Roland 5 shoulder-fired anti-air missiles. Reports have still not been denied that these systems were stamped '2002 date of manufacture.'
9. The french peddled disinformation against the Americans before the war -- this is a war for oil, Resolution 1441 does not authorize military action, George Bush is "cowboy," etc. -- at the very least, they now deserve some of their own.
10. The frogs proactively tried to get the African nations to vote against us in the U.N. by sending a french emissary to each sitting temporary Security Council member. Strong rumors of bribes and threats linger today.

Those countries who stood against us before the Iraq War are responsible for EVERY life lost in Iraq -- whether the lives be coalition lives or Iraqi lives. france, more than any other country, is responsible for all the deaths of our warriors.

france had an unemployment rate of 9.3% last month (April 03). It’s rising. Can we help them push it over 10%? 20%?. The new reality show on FOX this fall could be the marxists, socialists, and fundamentalist muslim imports (they are about 10% of the population and growing) burning paris to the ground. You can help:

WE SHOULD NEVER FORGET!

Gotta keep this alive. Share this link with all like minded family and friends. They are feeling the heat.

15000 french products that you can boycott:

http://howtobuyamerican.leethost.com/b-db-boycottfrance.shtml

[Shmokey]

It doesn't get any lower than this.

[dr_who_2]

Is soccer season over?

[Burkeman1]

Whatever differences we have with France now- they too shall pass. It would be nice to think that a hundred years from now the graves of American fallen at Normandy will still be manicured and the flag still flying over them.

[RocketWolf]

During the march to the Yorktown campaign 12 French soldiers fell sick and died near Norwich, CT. They are buried in the Congregational cemetary in Norwichtown, and their mass grave decorated annually by both US and French oficials.

[El Gato]

We should have "brought them home" at the time they died. I just don't understand why the US Government never did this.

Pure logistics. There were alot of dead in those wars, especially WW-II. In WW-I the ability to preserve the bodies would have been somewhat problematic as well. We didn't really start bringing home the bodies of the dead until the Korean War, and that was out of desire not to establish permanent cemetaries there.

I'm sure There are American graves everywhere we have fought. Cuba, Mexico, the Phillipines (3 times) and so forth. Plus of course the huge cemetaries holding those who died in the Civil War.

[El Gato]

During the march to the Yorktown campaign 12 French soldiers fell sick and died near Norwich, CT. They are buried in the Congregational cemetary in Norwichtown, and their mass grave decorated annually by both US and French oficials.

Those graves and those of the other Frenchmen who helped us win our independence should not be disturbed in the least. That was a different France than the one smelling up the Western part of Europe these days.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Yes, there is one, at Yorktown, VA . I hate to seem like an apologist for the French, but will desecrating their graves make you feel better?

To my way of thinking desecrating British graves in France is dishonorable. How can desecrating French graves in Virginia not be dishonorable?

[xtorpedoman]

preach on .

[theDentist]

Ahh! I hope we send a similar message to them again.

[BlueLancer]

"It would be nice to think that a hundred years from now the graves of American fallen at Normandy will still be manicured and the flag still flying over them."

Piffle ... in 20 years, when Islam rules France and Sharia Law is applied, these gravesites will be desecrated because of the crosses and Stars of David. Then, it will be too late to rescue our dead without invading France.

Although, I guess, any excuse is better than none.