Overview
- The administrative judge suspended the mayor’s arrêté, clearing the way for the ceremony to proceed on Saturday at Saint-Jean-Baptiste church in Verdun.
- The court noted the service’s timing and church venue were not inherently likely to cause disorder and referenced the requirement that any limits on worship be necessary, adapted, and proportionate.
- Mayor Samuel Hazard had banned the event, arguing it was a political act incompatible with Verdun’s commemorative identity and warning of potential disturbances.
- Hazard rejected portraying Philippe Pétain as a Verdun hero, calling that claim Vichy propaganda, and condemned his role in WWII deportations.
- The Association pour défendre la mémoire du Maréchal Pétain said it obtained written authorization from church authorities to hold the mass honoring Pétain and his soldiers.