Afghanistan - soldiers - Taliban
French town honors its soldiers killed in Afghanistan
Sunday 24 August 2008
The town of Castres, in southwestern France, paid tribute Friday to the 10 soldiers killed in an ambush in Afghanistan on Tuesday, members of a parachutist regiment based in the town.
Sunday 24 August 2008
By AFP (text) / France 2, O. Farry (video)25/07/07: Kapisa, a test for
16/11/07: Taliban-istan - two sides, one war
Castres residents paid their last respects Friday to eight of 10 French soldiers killed in an ambush in Afghanistan whose regiment is based in this southwestern French town.
Roughly a thousand people packed Saint Benedict cathedral, as the coffin of warrant officer Sebastien Devez -- the only local resident among the dead soldiers -- was borne in silence by fellow soldiers from his parachutist regiment.
Photos of the other seven soldiers were placed around the coffin.
Those attending the ceremony included Devez' family and widow, who sat in tears with his daughter on her knee.
Hundreds of people gathered in the square outside to watch the event on a giant screen. The town's shops closed their blinds during the ceremony and public offices were shuttered in tribute to the dead soldiers.
The event offered one poignant closure to the killings, even as debate raged about their deaths this week -- France's worst military loss in 25 years -- and the country's role in Afghanistan.
Monday's incident left another 21 French soldiers wounded.
"We cannot be accomplices to evil, death and war," said Archbishop Pierre-Marie Carre who presided over the service. "We must today show compassion, friendship -- today, tomorrow, always."
In an interview to be published Sunday, a senior aide to President Nicolas Sarkozy said most of the assailants that killed the soldiers were not Afghans, but rather Islamists from elsewhere.
"Now that the situation has changed in Iraq, they are going to a new front and that's Afghanistan," chief of staff Claude Gueant told Paris/Aujourd'hui en France newspaper.
Polls show a large majority of French opposed Sarkozy's decision earlier this year to send 700 additional troops to Afghanistan, with many fearing the country is getting bogged down in an unending war.
The French leader, who presided over a Paris ceremony to honour the dead on Thursday, has rejected any idea of withdrawing.
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Relatives mourn French soldiers killed in Afghanistan, FR2 report. 21/08
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'OUR SOLDIERS CARRIED OUT THEIR DUTY WITH GREAT COURAGE'
Jean Marie Bockel, France's Junior Ministry of Defence, speaks to FRANCE 24
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FRANCE 24 REPORT
The French President and Defence Minister arrived in Kabul following the deadly attack. Video by R.Ranucci, S.Sitbon, R. Marusak and Mathieu Mabin, 20/08/08
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IN THE FIELD
"It certainly sent a shockwave through the international community here" - Jerome Starkey, 20/08/08
Vidéo
Pour aller plus loin
Pour aller plus loin
03/09/2008 21:50:32 Alert a moderator
Afghanistan
By Danieal - Johannesburg
I bleive Italy, England USA France all had their victims. As a mother I can only feel sorry for the mothers, the wives, the sisters eetc. But surely these guys know that when they go to war the risk to die is there. Do you want to see them as heros fo the nations? I am sure their blood would be more useful for other causes. Nobody is talking about the thousands of civilians who die every day in Irak, Afghanista etc, are tehy not also children of crying and bereaving mothers? Are they not worth our compassion?
03/09/2008 18:48:16 Alert a moderator
Afghanistan
By Anonyme - London
In early 1937 my father was a British Army major stationed in India when the regiment was posted to the frontier with Afghanistan. As a result my mother, heavily pregnant with me, returned to England for my birth. Later, I discussed the expedition with my father who commented that the British had been fighting Afghan tribesment for 150 years already and that "it was a complete waste of time as these people would never be civilised". In more recent years a Pakistani friend of mine told me that nobody in their right mind in Pakistan ever set foot in what they called the "tribal areas". Although one can understand that the idiots who run America can continue this futile expedition, there is no reason why our idiot political leaders should have their noses up the Americans bottoms. We are simply wasting British (and French) lives to no avail. It must stop.
03/09/2008 10:08:48 Alert a moderator
Afghanistan
By Anonyme - UK, Corby
We (the french etc) should not be occupying Afghanistan. Terrorism is an excuse, we want to protect the cultivation of drugs for US use.
26/08/2008 11:29:02 Alert a moderator
Last commentary
By Yamin - Monteal
Before insulting our President, you should have studied a bit more the topic of Jihad and what it means for our free countries, Sarkozy is right in comparing this phenomena with Nazi Germany. In 1930 in didn't help to want peace and refuse the idea of 1000 years Reich, because Hitler believed in it, only a speedy military reaction would have spared the world over 40 millions death. Nowdays the Islamist believe in the rise of an universal Kalifat, and your peace ideas will not detere them to fight for it with all means.
23/08/2008 14:12:11 Alert a moderator
news
By joseph walker - sherborne dorset uk
You cannot fight a campaign with one hand tied behind your back.to many restrictions in rules of combat.
22/08/2008 06:47:41 Alert a moderator
Sarkozy is a Man
By John -
Sakorzy is the only leader who has the courage to annonce his visit in Afganistan before going there.He told the terrorists he was coming to get his dead brothers. The other leader from like Brown or his Oncle don't have a nut. They only make surprised visit because the are scared of the terrorist. I like Sarkozy because he is a man.
22/08/2008 01:37:12 Alert a moderator
Homage
By Eva - united states
I am impressed with the way French President Nicolas Sarkozy paid homage to these brave soldiers. My thoughts are with their respective families.
21/08/2008 10:12:33 Alert a moderator
feminist soldiers?
By Anonyme - france
Well, you should go first in a french army barrack and discuss with soldiers before saying they're protecting women against oppression...You're going too far, for sure. They were sent there to follow a policy, and liberation of women is not a priority of any kind, neither in Afghanistan nor in France! Don't forget the support given to taleban up until 1998 by western countries, don't forget the fact that Mr Sarkozy said that the saudian society was a model...
20/08/2008 00:58:35 Alert a moderator
Brave soldiers
By Anonyme - UK Londres
My sincere condolences to the families and friends of the brave French soldiers who sacrificed their lives to bring Afghanistan from the 14th century to the 21st century. You gave your lives so that the female half of the population could have the same lives as the male, that the intelligent male population could have the ability to state that that is what they want.
20/08/2008 18:42:54 Alert a moderator
Any Conflict
By Anonyme - United States
Nobody wins in a war….
It is a monumental failure of world leaders….
And to humanity….
20/08/2008 16:18:12 Alert a moderator
Afganistan
By Peter Vaughan - England
when are 'we' going to stop the supply of 'bullets' getting through?
20/08/2008 13:12:39 Alert a moderator
Thanks to France - Sorrow for your soldiers' deaths
By Anonyme - USA/North Carolina
My sorrow and prayers go out to your nation and soldiers' families. France has been a friend of the USA for over 230 years. The French Navy helped the US win the Battle of Yorktown and assure our freedom. We appreciate your support of freedom today and your President's support. God Bless France and your soldiers.
19/08/2008 21:46:40 Alert a moderator
sad
By bert - toulouse/France
Sad news, but not beyond expectations. The main problem of the region is Pakistan. Pakistan is fueling the afghan insurgents. Where do all those weapons come from? Where are the fighters bases? Pakistan, along with saudi Arabia, was the main support of taleban since 1994, they created them. Pakistan supported them up until nov 2001. It is not Iran which support those taleban, but Pakistan. Are we going to keep our ties and business with those people killing our soldiers, wether they'refrench, US or brits? How long will it last?
19/08/2008 20:42:06 Alert a moderator
Very sorry
By Ronald Mcisaac - Canada
Very sorry for france's loss.
19/08/2008 19:20:42 Alert a moderator
France stays the course alongside Bush.
By Anonyme - Ansonia, Connecticut
Macho macho man!
How can this possibly be a good thing?
19/08/2008 15:13:37 Alert a moderator
a right war?
By John - US-New York
The real question is: is it a right war? I am really sad for these soldiers, but do we have to send more troops in this country? Sarkozy, Bush, Obama, Mc Cain are all the same: they want to keep troops in Afghanistan. Kabul is the only city controlled (almost) in Afghanistan...
19/08/2008 14:16:31 Alert a moderator
again
By Anonyme - USA
This is the price to pay for choosing an idiot as president what worries me more is that mr sarkozy wants to send even more troops to Afghanistan. It seems Americans again have made up their minds to choose one of the two warmongers once again.God bless us all, even if you French don't believe in one.