D-Day 82nd anniversary commemorated in Normandy - VIDEO
World leaders and the last surviving veterans gathered in Normandy, France, on Saturday to mark the 82nd anniversary of the D-Day landings, with ceremonies held in Langrune-sur-Mer and Colleville-sur-Mer paying tribute to the Allied forces that launched the liberation of Europe in 1944.
On June 6, 1944, nearly 160,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy under Operation Overlord during World War II, marking the start of the liberation of German-occupied Western Europe, News.Az reports, citing Euro News.
More than 4,400 Allied troops were killed on D-Day, with the majority being American, while German casualties are estimated between 4,000 and 9,000 killed, wounded or missing.
This year’s commemorations included only a small number of surviving veterans, six of whom travelled to France to attend events at the British Normandy Memorial.
French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and US Deputy Defence Secretary Elbridge Colby took part in ceremonies at Langrune-sur-Mer, alongside US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who also laid tributes at the American memorial.
Hegseth, joined by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, described the soldiers as having “carried the hopes and prayers of a free world,” adding that the Allied forces “spearheaded a great crusade to shatter the Nazi war machine and liberate the continent.”
UK Defence Secretary John Healey also laid a wreath at the British Normandy Memorial, which honours more than 22,000 British personnel listed on its Roll of Honour.
D-Day, regarded as the largest seaborne military operation in history, involved simultaneous landings across five beaches in Normandy following extensive planning and a 24-hour delay due to adverse weather conditions.
By Leyla Şirinova
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