WARSAW: Poland commemorated the 78th anniversary of the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, with events taking place across the capital city.
The Warsaw Uprising was the largest underground military operation in German-occupied Europe, with around 40,000-50,000 insurgents taking part in fighting over two months, and huge casualties, reports Xinhua news agency. Around 18,000 insurgents died, so did as many as 180,000 civilians. After the uprising was crushed, about 500,000 residents were forced to evacuate the city, and Warsaw was almost completely razed to the ground.
At 5 pm on Monday, the time the uprising began, the main event was held in front of the Gloria Victis monument at the Powazki Military Cemetery. President Andrzej Duda, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and other officials, as well as citizens and veterans, paid tribute to the insurgents who led the uprising. Meanwhile, a parade took place at the Castle Square in the Old Town, and in the city centre.
Earlier in the day, President Duda laid a wreath at the site of the massacre in the Wola district, where Germans executed thousands of civilians in retaliation for the uprising. Flowers were laid at the monument to the Mokotow (district) insurgents in Dreszera Park.
The national flag was also raised, and the "fire of memory" was brought from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to burn for 63 days -- the length of the uprising. Prime Minister Morawiecki visited the Warsaw Uprising Museum, where he laid flowers at the plaque to late President Lech Kaczynski, who established the Museum. IANS
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