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Senegal unveils report on WWII massacre by French colonial army

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
Today 08:33
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Senegal releases an official report on the 1944 Thiaroye massacre, accusing France of premeditated killings and cover-up of hundreds of African soldiers.

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Senegal's President Bassirou Diomaye Faye delivers his speech during the African Vaccine Manufacturing Accelerator conference, on June 20, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP)

Investigations into one of the most brutal episodes of France’s colonial past took a decisive turn on Thursday, as researchers formally presented an official report to Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye detailing the findings of a decades-long probe into the 1944 Thiaroye massacre, when French colonial troops opened fire on African soldiers who had fought alongside them during World War II.

The white paper, commissioned by the Senegalese government, says France committed premeditated mass killings and systematic cover-up efforts. It concludes that French authorities deliberately falsified records to obscure the scale of the atrocity.

“The French authorities did everything to cover it up,” the report states, noting that while official French documents claim 70 victims, independent archival and eyewitness evidence indicate between 300 and 400 soldiers were killed.

President Faye hailed the report as a milestone in Senegal’s pursuit of historical justice.

“This white paper is a decisive step in the rehabilitation of historical truth,” he said during the ceremony, which was attended by Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and senior members of government.

“It is based on tangible facts, drawn from archives here and in France,” he emphasized.

Excavations uncover new evidence

Since May 2025, archaeologists have been conducting excavations at the Thiaroye military camp near Dakar, unearthing human remains with bullet wounds, a discovery that corroborates survivor testimonies and contradicts the colonial narrative of a small-scale mutiny.

The excavations, ordered by the Senegalese government, are part of broader efforts to locate mass graves and identify the victims. President Faye said the investigations would continue “at all sites likely to contain mass graves,” insisting that “historical truth cannot be decreed.”

“It is uncovered excavation by excavation, until the last stone is lifted,” he added.

The massacre and its legacy

In November 1944, roughly 1,300 African soldiers, known as Tirailleurs Senegalais, returned to Senegal after being imprisoned by Nazi Germany while serving in the French army. Stationed at Thiaroye, they demanded overdue wages and equal treatment with their white counterparts.

On December 1, 1944, French colonial forces responded with lethal force, firing on the unarmed soldiers in what the new report calls an act of premeditated repression.

At the time, French officials claimed 35 deaths and dismissed the incident as a “mutiny.” However, historians and human rights groups have long disputed that version of events, arguing it was a massacre aimed at silencing African demands for dignity and equality.

France’s late acknowledgment

France did not officially acknowledge the massacre until November 2024, marking 80 years since the killings. French President Emmanuel Macron described it as a “massacre,” breaking decades of political silence but stopping short of issuing a formal apology or committing to reparations.

The Tirailleurs Senegalais were part of France’s colonial military corps, established during the Second Empire and disbanded in the 1960s. Composed of recruits from across West Africa, including Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast. They fought in both world wars and in colonial wars of decolonization.

Today, the Thiaroye massacre stands as a powerful symbol of colonial injustice and African sacrifice, and the new report could pave the way for renewed calls for reparations and historical accountability from Paris.