"It was a difficult mission": Senegalese historians on 1944 massacre findings - Video
Senegalese historians investigating the 1944 Thiaroye massacre presented preliminary findings at a press conference in Dakar ahead of the annual commemoration.
The research committee, which recently accessed French archives, uncovered previously unseen documents that shed new light on the killings.
Rokhaya Fall, a historian on the team, described the mission as successful despite its challenges. "It was a difficult mission. But it was a mission that succeeded if I can put it that way, insofar as we were able to obtain things that had never been seen before. Initially, we came across elements that only spoke of the general context, that only spoke of the Second World War,” she said. Among their discoveries were death certificates of African riflemen, found in Dakar's 1945 death registers, offering critical evidence about the victims.
Chairman of the Thiaroye commemoration committee, Mamadou Diouf, emphasised the search for truth over diplomatic considerations. "We want to know what happened on December 1, 1944—how many died and why armoured vehicles were used against them," he stated. Diouf criticised French efforts to obscure the incident, calling it a deliberate attempt to erase the massacre from history.
The Thiaroye massacre occurred when African soldiers, known as ‘tirailleurs’, who had fought for France during World War II, demanded overdue pay and fair treatment upon their return to Dakar. French forces responded by opening fire, killing at least 35 men, though historians believe the actual death toll may be significantly higher.
President Bassirou Diomaye Faye recently confirmed receiving a letter from French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledging France's responsibility for the massacre.
