A person caught on video lighting a cigarette from the everlasting flame on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier below the Arc de Triomphe in Paris has been handed a three-month suspended sentence, in response to Eire’s Nationwide Public Service Multi-Media Organisation, Raidió Teilifís Éireann.
Hakim H, a 47-year-old building employee residing in Normandy and dealing in Paris, was discovered responsible of desecrating the sacred monument by a Paris felony court docket. The person, as per the report, admitted his actions throughout an expedited trial, describing his habits as “the stupidity of the century.”
“I deeply remorse this, I apologise to all French folks,” Hakim H was quoted as saying, breaking down in tears within the courtroom. He defined that he acted inebriated and drugs.
Moreover the suspended sentence, Hakim was fined a symbolic one euro and ordered to hunt therapy for his alcohol and drug addictions.
Video sparks outrage
The incident occurred on Monday night and was broadly shared on social media, frightening public indignation. The footage exhibits Hakim stepping over protecting boundaries, crouching to mild his cigarette from the flame that has burned constantly since 1923, then strolling away calmly as vacationers watch.
Official reactions
French Inside Minister Bruno Retailleau condemned the act on social media platform X (previously Twitter), stating: “This unworthy and deplorable act undermines the reminiscence of those that died for France.”
Veterans Minister Patricia Miralles described the motion as a grave insult, declaring: “”France won’t ever tolerate tarnishing the reminiscence of those that died for her. This isn’t a easy deviation, it’s a desecration.”
Significance of the memorial
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has stood beneath the Arc de Triomphe since 1920 as France’s principal tribute to fallen troopers, holding the physique of an unidentified serviceman from World Struggle I. The everlasting flame on the website, first lit in 1923, symbolizes enduring remembrance and respect for the lifeless.
