US and French flags and a flower are placed on the grave ofJames D. Black, from New York, who died on June 11, 1944, at the Colleville American military cemetery, in Colleville sur Mer, western France, Wednesday June 6, 2018, on the 74th anniversary of the D-Day landing. (AP Photo/David Vincent)
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France (AP) — U.S. and other allied troops have joined veterans of the D-Day invasion and families of fallen soldiers to mark 74 years since the massive military operation that change the course of World War II.
Amid fog and wind, ceremonies were held Wednesday at the American military cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer and along the Normandy beaches and cliffs where Allied forces landed in Nazi-occupied France.
WWII enthusiasts from France wearing 101st Airborne uniforms attend a ceremony near Omaha beach next to the Colleville American military cemetery, in Colleville sur Mer, western France, Wednesday June 6, 2018. U.S. and other allied troops have joined veterans of the D-Day invasion and families of fallen soldiers to mark 74 years since the massive military operation that change the course of World War II. (AP Photo/David Vincent)
Thousands of U.S., British, Canadian and French troops launched a combined naval, air and land assault as dawn was breaking on June 6, 1944. The invasion weakened the Nazis’ hold on Western Europe after they suffered a punishing defeat in Stalingrad in the east.
Wednesday’s ceremonies were relatively low-key, while bigger events are planned for the 75th anniversary next year.
“Never Forget” is written in the sands of Omaha beach next to the Colleville American military cemetery, in Colleville sur Mer, western France, Wednesday June 6, 2018, on the 74th anniversary of the D-Day landing. (AP Photo/David Vincent)
