The atmosphere was heavy in the Sainte Réparate Cathedral, in the old town. Believers, priests, army veterans, and curious onlookers gathered in the sacred place. Everyone observed the same solemnity as Monsignor Sankalé preached for the soldiers who had fallen honorably in Afghanistan. Words of compassion and solidarity: “we must identify with the families of the victims in their grief.” The Bishop of Nice wished to “avoid the recurrence of such a tragedy” and condemned “an additional step in the escalation of the absurd, a true hatred fed by hatred.”
At Attention
Far from the Eucharist, Christian Estrosi, along with the Prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, Dominique Vian, then proceeded to the war memorial near the port to lay a wreath of flowers. The ceremony, military this time, was meant to be particularly sober. Yet, the context remains significant. The heavily armed clashes between French soldiers and the Taliban have eventually shaken both political and public opinion. Senator Jacques Peyrat, attending as a former combatant, did not mince his words. He referred to “a new war to which we will have to adapt.” Speaking of the soldiers, “it was their job,” he continued, “they had chosen to go to war to defend our colors. So far, we hadn’t felt, in France, that our men were going to fight a real war.”
Si vis pacem…
Between the moment of silence and a roaring Marseillaise, the elected officials wished to convey a more specific message of peace. As an endorsement of Nicolas Sarkozy’s policy, Dominique Vian, Prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, considered the conflict necessary: “there is no peace if one is not ready for the ultimate sacrifice and does not show solidarity. For me, that’s the whole meaning of the Eucharist.” In turn, Christian Estrosi justified Nice’s tribute to the fallen soldiers: “Nice had to, along with the president, pay homage to all those children who defended a just cause.” And Rudy Salles concluded: “our soldiers are fighting for peace, for democracy. Not for the war, nor to conquer, but to restore freedom and dignity to the Afghans.”
