Macron acknowledges 1944 ‘massacre’ of West African troops by French army

NEWS WIRES

29 November 2024 at 2:07 am·1-min read

The graves of the Senegalese infantrymen killed on December 1, 1944 by the French army at the Thairoye military cemetery in Dakar, on November 26, 2024.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday acknowledged that the 1944 killing of West African soldiers in a Senegalese fishing village by French forces was a massacre for the first time. The soldiers had fought alongside the French during World War II, but were killed by their French counterparts in what historians believe was a dispute over unpaid wages.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday for the first time recognized the killing of West African soldiers by the French Army in 1944 as a massacre in a letter addressed to the Senegalese authorities.

Macron’s move, on the eve of the 80th anniversary of the World War II killings in Thiaroye — a fishing village on the outskirts of the Senegalese capital of Dakar — comes as France’s influence is declining in the region, with Paris losing its sway in the former French colonies in West Africa.

Between 35 and 400 West African soldiers who fought for the French Army in the Battle of France in 1940 were killed on Dec. 1, 1944 by French soldiers after what the French described as a mutiny over unpaid wages.

Speaking to reporters late on Thursday, Faye said Macron’s step should “open the door” so that the “whole truth about this painful event of Thiaroye” can finally come out.

(AP)

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