PARIS (Reuters) – French government officials on Saturday said they would work to track down those responsible for defacing a memorial to the victims of a Nazi massacre during World War Two, which was painted over with graffiti calling the killings a lie.
The site, at the village of Oradour-sur-Glane near the western city of Limoges, commemorates the hundreds of men, women and children who were killed in June 1944 by an SS division.
The word “martyr” on the memorial was crossed out, with “menteur” or “liar” daubed next to it.
“Nothing can erase the memory of our 642 martyrs of
Oradour-sur-Glane,” French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter.
Prime Minister Jean Castex said in a statement that everything would be done to bring those behind the “disgraceful acts” to justice.
(Reporting by Sarah White and Elizabeth Pineau; Editing by David Holmes)
