French officials uncovered Islamic-themed graffiti on around sixty graves at a cemetery in France. The graffiti included messages such as “Submit to Allah,” “France is already Allah’s” and “Happy Ramadan, non-Muslims.” In a disturbing incident that has angered the local community, 58 graves at the Clermont-d’Excideuil cemetery in Périgord Vert, Dordogne, were discovered vandalized on the morning of March 11th (Monday).
The incident was reported to have taken place during the night of March 10th (Sunday), but it was only noticed by Mayor Claude Eymery of Clermont d’Excideuil the following morning. Inscriptions were found on graves, the war memorial, the church door, a Calvary, and a fountain.
“France is already Allah’s,” is scrawled in capital letters on the edge of one tomb site while another displayed, “Happy Ramadan, non-Muslims.” “GWER” which translates as ‘white person, Westerner, or non-Muslim’ in Algerian Arabic, is seen on at least two tombs. The church’s wooden doors bearing the words “Ramadan Mubarak,” placed 300 meters from the graveyard, also served as a target.
Mayor Eymery reportedly witnessed the disturbing scene upon his arrival at the cemetery at 8:30 in the morning on Monday. He conveyed the incident to FranceInfo and immediately contacted the police, saying, “It’s weird in a small town like that. I thought it only happened elsewhere.” Jacques-Edouard Andrault, the public prosecutor of Périgueux, responded to the information promptly and declared that an ‘aggravated damage’ probe had been launched.
Residents of Périgord Vert frequently bury their loved ones in the cemetery and many of them were “shocked” and “traumatized” by the tragedy.
Image source: Linda Ikeji’s Blog