Normandy gears up for 61st D-Day anniversary

Monday, June 6, 2005

SAINTE-MERE-EGLISE, France -- World War II veterans and dignitaries were gathering in Normandy for ceremonies today to honor the sacrifices of Allied soldiers who died in the D-Day landings 61 years ago. Dozens of ceremonies were planned to commemorate those who fought and died on the five blood-soaked beaches during the June 6, 1944, siege that marked the beginning of the end of the Nazi regime. French and American officials planned a tribute with a church choir and band at the Normandy American cemetery in the town of Colleville-sur-Mer, where 9,387 fallen U.S. fighters are buried. Parades, wreath-laying ceremonies and concerts were scheduled in many towns and villages in a region.

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