Overview

• President Emmanuel Macron marked 80 years since the liberation of Strasbourg by Free French forces, highlighting the significance of the event in France's World War II history.
• Macron called for greater recognition and education about the 'Malgré-nous,' 130,000 Alsatians and Mosellans forced into the German army during Nazi occupation, many of whom faced tragic fates.
• The president announced the panthéonization of Marc Bloch, a historian, resistance fighter, and co-founder of the Annales School, who was executed by the Gestapo in 1944.
• Macron emphasized the need to confront the complex legacy of the 'Malgré-nous,' whose forced service in the Wehrmacht has long been a sensitive and misunderstood chapter in French history.
• Commemorative events included a military ceremony in Strasbourg, a visit to the Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp, and tributes to General Leclerc and the Second Armored Division's role in the city's liberation.