Macron marks liberation of Strasbourg and discovery of concentration camp

French President Emmanuel Macron has led ceremonies marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Strasbourg and the discovery of Natzweiler-Struthof, the only Nazi concentration camp established on French soil.

The commemorations began with a military ceremony at Strasbourg's Place Broglie, where Mr Macron awarded the Legion of Honour to four veterans. 

At the Palais Universitaire, the President announced that Marc Bloch, a historian and resistance fighter who was executed by the Nazis in 1944, would be reinterred in the Panthéon – a monument in Paris to France's greatest citizens.

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Mr Bloch's contributions as both a scholar and resistance hero were highlighted as emblematic of the intertwining of history and memory.

The French President also awarded the Legion of Honour to Mr Bloch's son Daniel for his role in the French resistance.

Mr Macron also visited the former Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp, located in the Vosges Mountains.

Operated by the Nazis from 1941 to 1944, the camp primarily detained resistance fighters, political prisoners and other individuals from across occupied Europe.

When Allied forces discovered the site near the end of the war, the scale of suffering and inhumane conditions shocked the world.

Mr Macron toured the site, reignited the deportees' flame, and participated in a memorial ceremony to honour the victims.

The ceremonies concluded at the Alsace-Moselle Memorial, where the President reflected on the region's unique wartime history, including the forced conscription of local men into the German army, successive changes in national identity and the sacrifices made by the people of Alsace-Moselle.

He also highlighted the contributions of African soldiers to France's liberation and the significance of the Kufra oath made by the 2nd Armoured Division, which vowed to ensure the French flag would once again fly over Strasbourg Cathedral.

These events are part of a year-long series of commemorations, which began with the 80th anniversary of the battles at Glières in April.