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| Europe |
| One in three French backs Saddam |
| 2003-04-02 |
| ILL-FEELING between Britain and France over the invasion of Iraq has plumbed new depths with the desecration of that most sacred of memorials, a war cemetery. The defilement of Commonwealth war graves in northern France coincided with a poll for The Times which found that 54 per cent of Britons no longer regarded France as a close ally because of its opposition to the war. Relations will be further rent by a second poll, in Le Monde, showing that only a third of the French felt that they were on the same side as the Americans and British, and that another third desired outright Iraqi victory over âles anglo-saxonsâ. Eleven thousand Allied soldiers lie buried in well-tended peace at Etaples, on the Channel coast near Le Touquet, victims of the struggle by Anglo-Saxons to liberate the French from the German invaders during the First World War. Last week the obelisk raised in their memory was defiled by red-painted insults such as âRosbeefs go homeâ; âMay Saddam prevail and spill your bloodâ; and, in a reference to the long-dead casualties beneath the manicured turf, âThey are soiling our landâ. Local gendarmerie have launched an inquiry, but have so far found no clues. They say there had been no significant demonstrations against the war in that area of France. The graffiti have been scrubbed off, but the incident has provoked outrage among British politicians, war graves staff and the few remaining relatives of those buried at Etaples. French politicians have joined the condemnation. Bruce George, Labour chairman of the Commons Defence Committee, said: âRemembering what sacrifice these men made for the liberation of France, I cannot believe any mature, sane person would be so stupid as that.â David Uffold, 63, a Shropshire farmer, is the only surviving relative of Rifleman Frederick Uffold of the London Regiment, who is buried at Etaples. âI find it sickening that anyone would vandalise the cemetery,â he said. âIt is the last place they should be protesting about Iraq. These fellows were drafted in to fight for France. I canât see any connection between the men buried at Etaples and the war in Iraq.â Peter Francis, of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, said he was disgusted that a place remembering those who died defending freedom in world wars long ago should be dragged into a current political debate. French politicians did their best to portray the desecration as an isolated act, but it nonetheless underlined anti-American and anti-British emotions running through France over what is seen there as a bungled invasion rapidly turning into a humanitarian disaster. President Chiracâs spokesman said: âWe are indignant and shocked by the desecration of the graves of soldiers who fought for our liberty.â Jean-Pierre Raffarin, the Prime Minister, said: âThe Americans are not the enemy; just because we are against this war, it does not mean that we want the victory of dictatorship over democracy.â |
| Posted by:kgb |
| #10 , in a reference to the long-dead casualties beneath the manicured turf, âThey are soiling our landâ. I WISH THE GERMANS WERE AS BRUTAL AS THESE SAND FLEAS ARE,AND KILLED EVERY LAST FRENCHIE THEY FOUND.COWARDS |
| Posted by: Brew 2003-04-02 22:50:32 |
| #9 Hmmmm, the french back losers...Where have I read that before? The last winner they backed was the U.S. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2003-04-02 18:23:51 |
| #8 Anybody got word on how the "investigation" is going? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-04-02 14:07:31 |
| #7 ""Remembering what sacrifice these men made for the liberation of France, I cannot believe any mature, sane person would be so stupid as that."" Two problems: One,the people that did that were not "mature, sane persons". They were probably Arab teenagers. Second, DeGaule brainwashed the French into believing they liberated themselves, without our help. What a pile of aardvark dung HE was! |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-04-02 12:32:21 |
| #6 Given what I witness at my workplace, among my relatives or my friends,... I agree more with Anonon than with Kgb's quotes, sadly. Btw, I think that 50%+ "I love Saddam" among far-rightists should be about right, too. Honestly, only jews (especially after pro-peace militants were assaulted by muslims during a demonstration), some center-right christians and libertarians are not longing for the eviiil US imperialists to get a bloody nose.. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-04-02 09:28:13 |
| #5 Here's a more optimistic interpretation of this poll which I found via InstaPundit. "Please! I read the same poll at the source , and 1) the question is missing. 2) the answer is that 25% -- a quarter, not a third -- say that they feel "more on the side of Iraq." MORE on the side of Iraq. This, coming from a country where 4 out of 5 inhabitants disapprove of the U.S. and British intervention in Iraq. Which to me means that just 25% of the French feel more on the side of those being attacked in a war that 80% of the French feel is unjustified. Yes, I know, the famous French empathy for the underdogs and victims, etc. So, think what you want, but to me this poll in no way means that a third the French are actually rooting for the victory of this monster Saddam. Come on!!" |
| Posted by: kgb 2003-04-02 08:01:24 |
| #4 We've taken enough crap from these back-stabbing punks. If France wants to play in the big leagues and lead a hostile alliance against the US they should pay the price. It's time to invoke the Monroe Doctrine and kick them out of the Western Hemisphere (various Caribbean islands, French Guiana, St. Pierre-et-Miquelon, etc.). We should liberate their territories in the South Pacific too (Tahiti, New Caledonia, Marquesas, etc.). Ch'Iraq and De Villepin will just have to shiver at Club Med Kerguelen Island instead. |
| Posted by: Ned 2003-04-02 06:38:31 |
| #3 I bet the gendarmerie are working real hard on it, too. How sad. Chiraq and de Villepin must be proud. |
| Posted by: Former Russian Major 2003-04-02 06:21:09 |
| #2 You gotta remember that 50% of the population lives in public housing. France better resembles a communist block country, than a western capitalist country. France is not the same country it was 50 years ago; after WWII. A very large portion of the population is Arab or has Arab roots. These people don't care about who liberated France in the past. France has been definately going down the wrong road. The road to ruin. |
| Posted by: George 2003-04-02 03:47:54 |
| #1 It's worse. Over half of all leftists are supporting victory for the Iraqi dictatorship. And around 90% of academics oppose the war. http://www.lemonde.fr/recherche/1,9687,,00.html |
| Posted by: Anonon 2003-04-02 02:40:25 |