DW News published this video item, entitled “Macron calls 1961 Paris massacre of Algerian protesters ‘inexcusable’ | DW News” – below is their description.
French president Emmanuel Macron has condemned as ‘inexcusable’ the brutal repression of Algerian protesters by Paris police 60 years ago. On October 17, 1961, officers carried out a deadly crackdown on a demonstration by tens of thousands of Algerians, in one of the darkest episodes in post war France. Some historians say more than 200 people were killed in the violence.
It’s the first time a French president has attended a memorial ceremony for the Algerians killed on that night. Emmanuel Macron joined relatives of the victims in paying tribute. 60 years ago at this spot, bodies were fished out from the Seine river.
An estimated 25 thousand Algerians rallied peacefully in protest against a curfew imposed on them alone. Police responded without mercy, arresting nearly 12,000 and killing dozens, throwing their bodies into the river. Many others were taken away to sorting centers and then deported.
The violence occurred in the final year of France’s violent attempt to keep Algeria as one of its colonies. For decades, successive administrations ignored the massacre. President Macron’s condemnation of the killings was only issued in a written statement and did not include an apology. This year’s commemoration took place amid diplomatic tensions between both countries over their history.
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In This Story: Algeria
Algeria, officially the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. The capital and most populous city is Algiers, located in the far north of the country on the Mediterranean coast. With an area of 2,381,741 square kilometres (919,595 sq mi), Algeria is the tenth-largest country in the world, and the largest by area in the African Union and the Arab world. With an estimated population of over 44 million, it is the eighth-most populous country in Africa.
Algeria is bordered to the northeast by Tunisia, to the east by Libya, to the southeast by Niger, to the southwest by Mali, Mauritania, and the Western Saharan territory, to the west by Morocco, and to the north by the Mediterranean Sea. The country has a semi-arid geography, with most of the population living in the fertile north and the Sahara dominating the geography of the south. This arid geography makes the country very vulnerable to climate change.
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In This Story: The Seine
The Seine is a 775-kilometre-long (482 mi) river in northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, 30 kilometres (19 mi) northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre (and Honfleur on the left bank).
It is navigable by ocean-going vessels as far as Rouen, 120 kilometres (75 mi) from the sea. Over 60 percent of its length, as far as Burgundy, is negotiable by large barges and most tour boats, and nearly its whole length is available for recreational boating; excursion boats offer sightseeing tours of the river banks in the capital city, Paris.
There are 37 bridges in Paris across the Seine (the most famous of which are the Pont Alexandre III and the Pont Neuf) and dozens more outside the city. A notable bridge, which is also the last along the course of the river, is the Pont de Normandie, the ninth longest cable-stayed bridges in the world, which links Le Havre and Honfleur.
