"D'DAY- EMOTIONAL TRIBUTE ON 'D'DAY

"D'DAY- EMOTIONAL TRIBUTE ON 'D'DAY

The Normandy American Cemetery, overlooking Omaha Beach and the English Channel, was established on June 8, 1944, as the first U.S. cemetery in Europe during World War II. It holds the graves of more than 9,300 U.S. servicemen who died in the D-Day invasion or subsequent missions.

During World War II (1939-1945), the Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June 1944 to August 1944, resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Prior to D-Day, the Allies conducted a large-scale deception campaign designed to mislead the Germans about the intended invasion target. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by the following spring the Allies had defeated the Germans. The Normandy landings have been called the beginning of the end of war in Europe.

After World War II began, Germany invaded and occupied northwestern France beginning in May 1940. The Americans entered the war in December 1941, and by 1942 they and the British (who had been evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk in May 1940 after being cut off by the Germans in the Battle of France) were considering the possibility of a major Allied invasion across the English Channel. The following year, Allied plans for a cross-Channel invasion began to ramp up. In November 1943, Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), who was aware of the threat of an invasion along France’s northern coast, put Erwin Rommel (1891-1944) in charge of spearheading defense operations in the region, even though the Germans did not know exactly where the Allies would strike. Hitler charged Rommel with finishing the Atlantic Wall, a 2,400-mile fortification of bunkers, landmines and beach and water obstacles.

D-DAY LANDINGS: JUNE 6, 1944

By dawn on June 6, thousands of paratroopers and glider troops were already on the ground behind enemy lines, securing bridges and exit roads. The amphibious invasions began at 6:30 a.m. The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture beaches codenamed Gold, Juno and Sword, as did the Americans at Utah Beach. U.S. forces faced heavy resistance at Omaha Beach, where there were over 2,000 American casualties. However, by day’s end, approximately 156,000 Allied troops had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches.According to some estimates, more than 4,000 Allied troops lost their lives in the D-Day invasion, with thousands more wounded or missing.Less than a week later, on June 11, the beaches were fully secured and over 326,000 troops, more than 50,000 vehicles and some 100,000 tons of equipment had landed at Normandy.For their part, the Germans suffered from confusion in the ranks and the absence of celebrated commander Rommel, who was away on leave. At first, Hitler, believing the invasion was a feint designed to distract the Germans from a coming attack north of the Seine River, refused to release nearby divisions to join the counterattack. Reinforcements had to be called from further afield, causing delays. He also hesitated in calling for armored divisions to help in the defense. Moreover, the Germans were hampered by effective Allied air support, which took out many key bridges and forced the Germans to take long detours, as well as efficient Allied naval support, which helped protect advancing Allied troops.In the ensuing weeks, the Allies fought their way across the Normandy countryside in the face of determined German resistance, as well as a dense landscape of marshes and hedgerows. By the end of June, the Allies had seized the vital port of Cherbourg, landed approximately 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles in Normandy, and were poised to continue their march across France.VICTORY IN NORMANDYBy the end of August 1944, the Allies had reached the Seine River, Paris was liberated and the Germans had been removed from northwestern France, effectively concluding the Battle of Normandy. The Allied forces then prepared to enter Germany, where they would meet up with Soviet troops moving in from the east.The Normandy invasion began to turn the tide against the Nazis. A significant psychological blow, it also prevented Hitler from sending troops from France to build up his Eastern Front against the advancing Soviets. The following spring, on May 8, 1945, the Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. Hitler had committed suicide a week earlier, on April 30.D-Day veterans bade an emotional farewell to the Normandy beaches on Friday after an outpouring of tributes from world leaders for their courage during a battle that liberated Europe from Nazism.Some 1,800 veterans, the youngest well into their 80s, rubbed shoulders with royalty, presidents and prime ministers as the world marked a historic day on which, in the words of France's leader, "the fate of humanity was played out and decided."Resplendent in military uniform with medals glinting in the Normandy sun, the veterans, many now wheelchair-bound, struggled to hold back the emotion during events recalling the largest seaborne assault in military history on June 6, 1944.Leading the tributes, a visibly moved US President Barack Obama said he was "truly humbled" by their presence, painting a picture of the carnage and courage as troops scrambled out of boats and piled out of low-flying planes into a hail of Nazi machine-gun fire."By daybreak, blood soaked the water, and bombs broke the sky. Thousands of paratroopers had dropped into the wrong landing sites; thousands of rounds bit into flesh and sand. Entire companies' worth of men fell in minutes. Hell's Beach had earned its name."More than 156,000 troops waded or parachuted onto French soil on June 6, 1944. Nearly 4,500 would be dead by the end of the day. Obama said the sacrifice and bravery of those men, then in their teens and 20s, had breached "Hitler's Wall" and ushered in today's era of democracy and freedom.The few remaining survivors of that day struggled painfully to their feet as the president's warm tribute sparked a lengthy standing ovation.French President Francois Hollande said the veterans' spirit would always grace the northern beaches in his country, pledging: "The gratitude of France will never, ever end."As the sun set on this longest day, a light came on across a Europe enslaved," said Hollande, who also paid tribute to the "courage of the Red Army" and the victims of Nazi Germany."On these now peaceful beaches, no matter how much time has passed, only one wind blows -- the wind of freedom," said the French president.

After Hollande's speech, gas flares sent fire and plumes of black smoke billowing into the air as images from the day played on giant screens and performers moved across the beach, many falling slowly to the ground in a moving reenactment of the horror 70 years ago.In a ceremony full of colourful military pomp, Hollande welcomed a score of world leaders one-by-one as they processed up a red carpet, flanked by young children and a guard of honour.The biggest cheers were reserved for Obama and Queen Elizabeth II, resplendent in a lime-green coat and matching hat and -- at the age of 88 -- on an increasingly rare foreign trip.But the stars of the show were undoubtedly the veterans, who lined up to receive some of the leaders as they made their way to the stands.Earlier in the day, one British veteran, 89-year-old Ken Godfrey, was applauded by well-wishers who shouted "bravo" and "thank you" as, medals clinking on his chest, he walked the mile-long path to Bayeux cemetery for a service."My main memory is wading through the sea with water up to my chest," he told AFP. "But I don't like to talk about the fighting. If people ask, I just say we had a hairy time. But I'm lucky that I survived."Bob Cowper, a 91-year-old Australian night fighter pilot, met his current prime minister Tony Abbott at the Bayeux ceremonies and told AFP that he flew over the beaches on D-Day as the fighting raged below."Looking down, even though we were making a contribution, I remember feeling empathy for all the poor buggers fighting on the ground."

It was Cowper's first trip back to Normandy and he beamed with pride at being present at the ceremonies."It's wonderful as an old man of 91 - it's like coming home."While world leaders did their best to concentrate on the solemnity of the occasion, diplomatic wrangling over the Ukraine crisis provided an unwanted backdrop.A frantic round of separate talks involving Obama, Hollande, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of Ukraine and Germany appeared to yield something of a breakthrough.Putin, brought out of the diplomatic deep-freeze for the occasion, said his talks with Western leaders were "positive" and issued a joint call with Ukraine's president-elect for an end to bloodshed in the east of the country.Rudolf Willem, 91, from the Netherlands, told AFP: "I liked everything but I thought that Mr Hollande was too long."

Prof. John Kurakar