Gisèle of course did not miss the news of the war in Ukraine. And especially the Russian attacks targeting civilians, such as the Boutcha massacre or the attack on the Kramatorsk station. 78 years ago, Giselle also survived a massacre of civilians. That of August 25, 1944 when German soldiers killed 124 inhabitants of his village of Maillé, out of 500 inhabitants. She was then 9 years old and had hidden in her cellar.
Still a painful memory
At 86, Gisèle never expected to see such images again. To protect herself, for the past few weeks she has simply not turned on her television. “We are shown the ruins of Ukraine all the time… It hurts me”she explains. “Reminds me of what I saw and heard that day.”
That day was the massacre of August 25, 1944. “On my birthday. My mum used to bake a cake with fresh butter”, she remembers, a little dreamily. Then his face darkened: “That day, there was no cake unfortunately…”
“What is happening in Ukraine, for me it is identical to Maillé”
Almost 80 years have passed since then. But his memories are still so clear. Like that of this neighbor who, at 9 o’clock in the morning, rushes to her house to say to hide. And of his mother who immediately takes him, with his two little brothers, to take refuge in the cellar.
“We stayed there and at a certain point, I heard ‘Vive la France!'” she remembers. She learns later that it was a neighbor who, wanting to find his children, ventures into the street and soon know he is doomed. The soldiers then shoot him. “What is happening in Ukraine, for me, is identical to Maillé. There were also people in the street, and they were shot at.”
Gisèle loses 17 family members. She identifies all too well with the civilian casualties in Ukraine and has only one wish. “In the morning when I turn on the radio, I would like to hear Putin announcing a ceasefire. But that, I don’t think I will ever hear…” she concluded sadly, not hiding her concern.