500 Muslim Soldiers' Tombs Desecrated In France

PARIS — Vandals desecrated at least 500 tombs of Muslim soldiers in northern France on Monday _ an act President Nicolas Sarkozy denounced as "repugnant racism."

The desecration near the town of Arras appeared timed with the start of Eid al-Adha, the most important holiday in the Muslim calendar.

The administration for the Pas-de-Calais region said the damaged tombs were in the Muslim section of the Notre-Dame-de-Lorette cemetery, a well-groomed burial ground for World War I soldiers. Some had swastikas scrawled on the tombstone, others had lettering whose meaning was unclear.

There are 576 graves in the Muslim section of the cemetery, where more than 30,000 soldiers are buried.

Sarkozy, in a statement, said the "abject and revolting act" equates with "repugnant racism against France's Muslim community" and insults the memory of all World War I combatants.

It was the third time the Muslim section of the cemetery has been targeted. Last April, 148 tombs were desecrated, and a year before that 52 headstones and an ossuary were vandalized.

The French Council for the Muslim Faith, a group representing France's numerous Muslim groups, decried "these odious, revolting and scandalous acts" and said it expected authorities to find out who carried out the attack.

Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said police were investigating the incident.

Comments

[SuperFrenchie]

temashana: //Absolutely disgusting. The French really need to address the issue of racism in their country. They are extremely anti-semetic as well, and it's quite frightenin­g.//

So when a couple of American teenagers desecrate the tombs of African Americans or a Jewish cemetery, should we also condemn every American as racist and "extremely antisemitic"?

http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2008/10/14/news/doc48f55da4c6488929430407.txt

http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASUS_12/5185_12.htm

[LaurieR]

Well, people all over the world happily condemn every Muslim as a violent, barbaric terrorist based on the actions of an extremist few, do they not? Equally wrong, so why is that acceptable?

All of it just has to stop. There's no excuse or rationale for any of it. For those of us who do believe in God, we have to remember that Christians, Muslims and Jews alike worship the exact same God, and He would not approve of all this hatred.

[MagisterLudi]

LaurieR are you seriously equating this kind of vandalism with acts at London, MAdrid, Bali, NY, Moscow, Beslan etc? Shame on you. Really...
Try one day to consider the difference between vandalism and wanton mu-rd-er of office workers and train passengers?!

[rushthelibs]

I wonder how most of you would respond to this story if the Muslim head stones were replaced by Jewish, Christian, or Mormon head stones.

[skahimself]

I despise ALL religions equally.

But that doesn't mean I would ever condone anything like this.

This is beyond idiotic and disgusting.

[MiddleRed]

Recently, some punk kids in our neighborhood desecrated a cemetery. Took crowbars and smashed headstones. They couldn't fit in all the people who wanted to speak at their sentencing.

When you desecrate the dead, who cannot speak for themselves, you are spitting on their entire lives, causing pain to their families, and, in general, being a stupid twit.

I'm outraged by both stupidity and racism. I speak out against it no matter who is on the receiving end of it. I am ethnic jew atheist, btw.

[rushthelibs]

Agreed. There is no excuse for this kind of stupidity. However, I do find it interesting how quickly some posters condemn this type of thing when it is directed at Muslims while jumping to the defense of Muslims when they perpetrate similar crimes. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

[MagisterLudi]

the same way.

[abigail1]

disgusting.

[shel3364]

CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG????


This is so stupid and hateful. WTF?

[apoyo]

This is so utterly wrong. If we can't even respect the dead what else is there to say.

[Chaucea]

*nods sadly*

You pretty much summed it up perfectly.

:-(

[Quick2822]

That's is so sad. What a bunch of damn cowards.

[BarackDaVote]

Horrible and Disgusting

[rabiddog6708]

To do this sort a thing to any soldier's grave is twisted. Using the resting place of the fallen to make hate-filled statements or political points should be reviled. Pay your repect to those who gave the last full measure and keep your hateful rants for the blogs or the graffiti for some wall somewhere.­..if you must do this sort of thing.

[ptarantino]

Whomever did this should go to jail for awhile.

[rudiy]

It is a terrible thing. However when you read European media, especially French and read what bloggers have to say, the only racist country in the world is the US. They have perfect harmony.

[RockySoldier]

true

[wijg]

Yeah, and they don't have any overweight people either. ~~rollseyes~~

[SansS]

For you generalists:

wijg,
Well not until MacDonalds, Dominos, Pizza Hut and others opened their doors. The majority of French are very slim, but the American culture is taking it's toll on the younger mostly immigrant or poorer population.

rudiy,
As for harmony: no the French, both white and non-white French, are very aware of the gaps and are pretty open on working on it. There is decent integration in the urban centers however class comes into play and augments the problem more than race.

Religions are taboo as a discriminating influence in France unlike other parts of the west.

Even though Arras and Pas de Calais is working class demographic, I'm guessing its criminality more than class or race at play.

[Ajita]

Actually, the French media is very aware that France is very racist. They've been having these problems for years, due to a large North African and Arab immigrant population.

[1dogs2]

You are exactly correct, Ajita. But Rudiy also has a point. There are large numbers of otherwise rational and progressive Europeans (including the Dutch, French and Germans) who enjoyed believing that the U.S. was the most racist country in the world -- right up to and beyond the moment when they began to experience waves of dark-skinned immigrants whose cultures were very different from theirs and who were furthermore Muslim. As long ago as the early '70s, I endured the righteous indignation of Germans (no less!!) regarding America's "race problem" at the very same moment that they were deploring the influx of Turkish "guest workers," as they were euphemistically referred to. As recently as this Sept., I conversed with French folks who were certain that Obama would never be elected and whose attitude toward him was informed by imperfectly concealed racism of their own. It's always easier, of course, to see the mote in another's eye than the timber in one's own.

[CalverH]

I am not sure about that. The French are VERY aware of racism in their country either against muslims or against black. You have TV shows, prtoest, laws, associations etc ... that are very active and loud. And the government also is aware. Note that President Sarkozy himself and the Minister decried those acts.

[Jules1]

Soldiers is the key word. These Muslims put their lives on the line for France. The people that did this crime, what have they done for their country except to destroy the faces of headstones and spread their hate within themselves, they have not harmed these dead heros, they have only harmed themselves more with their hate, because by doing so they have made sure that the rest of the world embraces the Muslims even more, and that is what we all must do, the hate must stop or we will destroy ourselves.

[chaos4700]

Well, you have a point -- there is a silver lining to every cloud. This reminds people that Muslims aren't some far off, alien society who don't share the same morals as we do -- they are and have been our neighbors, in our own country as well as those of our allies, and when duty has called, our protectors and defenders on the battlefield. Colin Powell did the same thing when he put a spotlight on the anti-Muslim rhetoric of the right wing and reminded us all that there are a number of Muslim soldiers in our own army. Kudos to you for making this point salient again.

[Rockered]

Humans! Stop! Do this http://www.revver.com/video/792524 get back to the soul.

[RockySoldier]

you! stop! get lost!

[AnthonyVolpe]

It's bad enough this was committed against Muslims. They were already dead. They died fighting in one of the costliest wars in human history. This is what they get for their service and their beliefs? Black Krylon?

There's no adjective in the dictionary strong enough to condemn this vandalism. None.

[CraigLove]

Mr. Sarkozy?

Islam is not a race, it's a religion. You and Boosh would get along just fine.

[canucklivinginUSA]

Don't put Sarkozy and BOOSH in the same sentence. That is quite unfair to Mr. Sarkozy.

[Jasel]

Wow that's pathetic