French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal honored the soldiers who were part of the Normandy landings as heroes at a ceremony on Juno Beach, as the world commemorates the 80th anniversary of the operations that helped end World War II.
“Our gratitude is eternal,” Attal said Thursday during a Canadian commemoration ceremony in the resort town of Courseulles-Sur-Mer. “France will never forget those who died for her.”
Attal called the veterans “heroes,” “figures of courage” and “faces of freedom” and vowed to keep the memory of them and their fallen comrades alive.
Attal said he was part of a generation that grew up without war, a generation that sometimes forgets how fragile democracy and freedom are.
He said he belongs to a generation that is constantly reminded of what it owes to those who left everything at their age to fight for freedom.
Now that war has returned to Europe, it was crucial to listen to the lessons of history, Attal said.
The ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy was also attended by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Britain’s Prince William.
