World War II veterans watched military aircraft fly over a central Dutch town on Monday as the Netherlands marked the 80th anniversary of its liberation by Allied troops from Nazi German occupation.
Festivities in Wageningen centred on a square outside the Hotel de Wereld, where German top brass signed papers on May 5, 1945, that formally ended the brutal five-year occupation as the war drew to a close across Europe.
A small group of veterans, their chests decorated with medals and legs covered in blankets, sat on the front row watching the ceremony. They were given a standing ovation as they arrived.
Germany finally surrendered on May 8, now known as Victory in Europe Day.
Liberation Day in the Netherlands is celebrated on May 5, a day after the country observes two minutes of silence to honour its war dead.
Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans used the occasion to call for renewed efforts to nurture peace.
“War and aggression are back in Europe and it is up to us to protect peace,†he said.
Brekelmans’ speech was briefly disturbed by a small group of protesters who shouted “Free free Palestine!†Police detained five people as Brekelmans continued to address the crowd, some of whom booed at the demonstrators as they were led away.
On Sunday, Dutch King Willem-Alexander and others laid wreaths at the national monument in Amsterdam, and two veterans lit a Liberation Fire in Wageningen hours later.
Mervyn Kersh, a 100-year-old veteran from Britain, and Nick Janicki, 101, from Canada, ignited the flame in Wageningen’s central May 5 Square. Some 50 veterans from around the world were expected to attend Monday’s celebrations.
Polish President Donald Tusk, whose country holds the rotating European Union presidency, was scheduled to give a speech later Monday. Polish troops were among Allied forces who helped liberate the Netherlands.
The country’s southern regions were freed in 1944 but the populous western regions had to wait months and endure famine known as the Hunger Winter that killed thousands.
Events across Europe marking the end of the 1939-45 war come as the traditional friendly links with the United States, whose forces helped liberate the Netherlands and much of the continent, are fraying. The European Union and the administration of President Donald Trump are now embroiled in a trade war.
On Sunday in Amsterdam, Prime Minister Dick Schoof discussed the grief his family felt over the death of his grandfather, who was executed by Nazi soldiers for his work in the resistance.
“On this day, in the two minutes of silence, that echo sounds extra loud. When we think of all the people who were murdered for who they were, who died of hunger or exhaustion, or who fought for peace and freedom — our peace and freedom,†PM Schoof said.
