Moroccan and French soldiers captured during World War II on a train to Germany A solemn tribute was paid on Tuesday to the Moroccan soldiers who fell during the 1940 battles against Nazi troops, on the occasion of the commemoration of the Battle of Kapelle in the southwest of the Netherlands.
During the commemorative ceremony for this battle, held at the French military cemetery in Kapelle, Morocco’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Mohamed Basri, honored the memory of the Moroccan, French, and Dutch soldiers who sacrificed their lives fighting Nazi troops and contributing to the Allied victory.
The diplomat stressed that this commemoration, first celebrated in 1985, fills Moroccans in the Netherlands with deep pride, reaffirming that the Moroccan fighters have not been forgotten and that the Moroccan, Dutch, and French peoples are bound by an unwavering friendship that transcends borders.
Referring to Morocco’s commitment during the Second World War, Basri recalled that the heroic participation of Moroccans in the Great War laid the foundation for an exemplary brotherhood in arms, whose echo “still resonates in our collective memory”.
Some 85,000 Moroccan fighters joined the French army to combat the Axis forces, following the call issued in 1939 by Sultan Mohammed Ben Youssef, in the aftermath of the declaration of the Second World War, he noted.
Several thousand of them lost their lives, the ambassador said, adding that their bravery continues to be recounted in the most faithful narratives today. “I bow with deep respect and heartfelt reverence before their blessed souls”, he stated.
- Source: MAP