Arnaud Beltrame
A true French hero: Visitors continue to pay homage to Arnaud Beltrame
When the mayor of Montfermeil, a small village in France, commemorated the memory of Arnaud Beltrame, a police officer who was killed after he offered himself up to a jihadist hostage-taker in exchange for a female victim, there was outrage from leftists and Muslims.
Published: July 29, 2018, 1:52 pm
A marble plaque in Beltrame’s honor read: “Colonel Arnaud Beltrame, officer of the Gendarmerie, 1973-2018, dead hero, victim of Islamist terrorism.”
But Muslim groups and far-left politicians expressed outrage that the plaque made reference to Islam.
Angélique Planet-Ledieu of the Left Front said: “The mayor continues his provocations and inscribes in marble his vision of a religious war.”
The gunman, a 26-year-old Moroccan citizen named Redouane Lakdim, however was the individual who had continued the religious war by taking hostages at a supermarket in Trèbes on March 23 and demanded the release from prison of Salah Abdeslam, one of the participants in the Paris terror attacks in November 2015.
Five people, including Beltrame, died in the Trèbes attack. After a three-hour stand-off, the terrorist shot and decapitated Beltrame.
“These terrorists have nothing to do with me or with Islam,” says Boubaker Abassi, a 72-year-old Muslim about the plaque. Members of the Montfermeil Muslims Association also complained: “We would have preferred that it be written victim of terrorism, or Daesh, but not the term Islam”. The association issued a statement asking the mayor to withdraw the term, but the mayor Xavier Lemoine ignored their request.
Lemoine does not want to discuss it, he says. “I’ve already said that, and I do not want to add anything. I’m afraid that the controversy is counterproductive for those who defend it,” said the elected representative.
Lemoine says he contacted Marielle [Beltrame], the widow of the colonel, for this tribute and she agreed.
“There are always comings and goings,” officials noted about the grave of Beltrame in Ferrals-les-Corbières. Despite the time that has passed, the soldier’s grave continue to receive visitors. In spite of the stifling summer heat, the flowers have remained fresh.
Simple and uncluttered, Colonel Beltrame’s tomb is not even embellished with a tombstone. Only a wooden cross indicates the place. A medal and a rosary surrounds the gilded plaque engraved with the name of the colonel (1973-2018), a member of the UNPRG, a French elite soldier unit.
Michel from Isère is one of the visitors that have come to pay homage to Colonel Beltrame. “What he has done, sacrifice his life for that of a hostage, deserves the respect of all. I did not come to be zealous, but to show him all the esteem I feel for him. I represent my comrades, members of the 7th BCA of Varces. This Arnaud Beltrame is a gentleman”. Back to his home, he says he will also visit the graves of Beltrame’s parents buried in Béziers.
Complete strangers say they prayed at the grave of a soldier who became, despite himself, the face of the ultimate French hero. Even Unites States President Donald Trump qualified him as a “great hero”, the BBC reported at the time of his death.
All rights reserved. You have permission to quote freely from the articles provided that the source (www.freewestmedia.com) is given. Photos may not be used without our consent.
Consider donating to support our work
Help us to produce more articles like this. FreeWestMedia is depending on donations from our readers to keep going. With your help, we expose the mainstream fake news agenda.
Keep your language polite. Readers from many different countries visit and contribute to Free West Media and we must therefore obey the rules in, for example, Germany. Illegal content will be deleted.
If you have been approved to post comments without preview from FWM, you are responsible for violations of any law. This means that FWM may be forced to cooperate with authorities in a possible crime investigation.
If your comments are subject to preview by FWM, please be patient. We continually review comments but depending on the time of day it can take up to several hours before your comment is reviewed.
We reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, contain slander or foul language, or are irrelevant to the discussion.
Europe
New App Helps Locate Sweden’s Historic Runestones
A new app called Swedish Runestones will help locate historical gems.
Swedish military wants to remilitarize the Åland Islands
The demilitarized autonomy has previously been known as 'the islands of peace.
NOAA Predicts Zero Sunspots for Almost the Whole 2030s
CLIMATEThe United States' government scientific organization, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), predicts zero sunspots from 2031 to 2040. This is an extreme situation that has not occurred in as long as humanity has been counting sunspots, and it leads us into uncharted territory in terms of our solar system. However, this prediction aligns with the warnings of the world-renowned solar researcher Valentina Zharkova for many years, who indicated in 2019 various signs of this catastrophic phenomenon, including the extreme hailstorms we have seen in Europe and the world this summer. The forecast and various observations this year give cause for very significant concern. In this unique analysis, Free West Media explains why.
European Nationalist Parties Forge Cooperation Ahead of EU Elections
EUROPEAN ELECTIONSOn Saturday, August 26, representatives of six European nationalist parties gathered in Budapest. The meeting was initiated by the Hungarian party Mi Hazánk and took place in the national parliament. Representatives of the parties signed a joint declaration that not only reaffirms the parties' friendship but also their unity on a range of complex political issues. A surprisingly clear and radical manifesto was established. The hope is that this cooperation will lead to success in the EU elections and eventually result in the formation of a group in the European Parliament. For Swedish nationalism, this meeting marks a success as Sweden, for the first time, has a party represented in a leading nationalist cooperation in Europe. Free West Media was present at this historic event.
Turkey Believes Sweden Hasn’t Done Enough
Sweden will have to wait a bit longer for NATO membership, according to Turkey's Justice Minister Jilmaz Tunc. First, Sweden must extradite the "terrorists" Turkey wants and stop the desecration of the Quran.
Swedish Weapon Takes Down Russia’s Best Attack Helicopter
The Russian attack helicopter Ka-52 is considered one of the world's best and has struck fear in Ukraine, where it has hunted down tanks and other armored vehicles, often beyond the range of many light anti-aircraft systems. However, it has met its match in the Swedish air defense missile system RBS 70, which has quickly led to significant losses for the Russian helicopter forces.
The Sun Drives Earth’s Climate, Not Carbon Dioxide
Top Researchers Push Back Against Climate Lies."The correlation is as clear as day," explained the Israeli astrophysicist Nir Shaviv, who was hailed by the establishment, before his interview with Forbes was hastily deleted. What he says contradicts the climate narrative, which points to humans as responsible for Earth's climate. Shaviv firmly asserts that it is the sun that controls the climate, something that can be scientifically proven in many ways. Contrary to the popular belief, the sun's influence on Earth has, in recent years, caused unusually cold and rainy weather, a trend that solar researchers warn will worsen significantly in the coming decades. The sun has exhibited an unusually low activity since 2016, during Solar Cycle 24, which was the weakest in a century.
Strong Confidence in German AfD
Alternative for Germany (AfD) held a party conference on July 29-30 to select candidates for the upcoming EU election next year. EU Parliament member Maximilian Krah, belonging to the party's more radical, ethnonationalist faction, was appointed as the top candidate. The party's two spokespersons delivered powerful speeches criticizing the EU's failed migration policy and trade sanctions that isolate Europe and Germany from the rest of the world. They argued that it's time for the EU to return a significant portion of its power to national parliaments. However, they have dropped the demand for Germany to exit the EU.
The Establishment Wants to Ban Germany’s Second Largest Party – for the Sake of Democracy
The rising popularity of AfD has raised strong concerns within the establishment. Despite lies and demonization in the media and isolation from the overall political establishment, the party continues to grow. Certain representatives of the party are accused of becoming increasingly "extreme," and in an unusual move, the influential weekly newspaper Der Spiegel demanded that AfD be "banned."
Dutch FvD break through the media blockade
What is happening in the Netherlands? It is often difficult to follow events in other countries, especially when distorted by system media. We give Forum for Democracy (FvD) the opportunity to speak out on the political situation in the Netherlands and the staunch resistance they face in trying to save the country.
No comments.
By submitting a comment you grant Free West Media a perpetual license to reproduce your words and name/web site in attribution. Inappropriate and irrelevant comments will be removed at an admin’s discretion. Your email is used for verification purposes only, it will never be shared.