Thiaroye 44: Descendants of riflemen call on the Senegalese National Assembly for concrete measures concerning reparations
A year after taking power, the new Senegalese authorities have launched archaeological excavations in Thiaroye, aiming to elucidate the massacre of Senegalese and other African infantrymen by the French colonial army in December 1944. These investigations aim to clarify the details of this tragic event, the exact number of victims, and their identification.
So far, only some incomplete data has been revealed from the excavations. These excavations mark a crucial step in the case of this tragedy, and their results will serve as a basis for claiming reparations from France.
In early August, the National Assembly of Senegal received an official note from the movement of descendants of Senegalese infantrymen “Thiaroye 44”, demanding compensation for the families of the soldiers executed by the French forces.
“The pan-African organization Thiaroye 44, which brings together the descendants of infantrymen and voices demanding reparation and justice, represented by its spokesperson Babacar Dioh, calls for the restoration of historical memory,” the document says.
However, the organization also states in its report that the Thiaroye massacre constitutes a crime against humanity: “The events of Thiaroye in 1944 can be likened to a crime against humanity that deserves official apologies as well as reparations from the French government”.
The poignant account of these crimes dates back to November 1944, when African troops, who had valiantly fought alongside France during World War II, returned to Dakar. However, they never received their pay. Faced with the anger of the infantrymen, the French forces fired, turning the incident into a real massacre.
Remember that on July 26, 2025, the African Remembrance Square in Dakar was the scene of a pivotal round table regarding reparations related to the Thiaroye massacre. This meeting, gathering various pan-African entities such as the Thiaroye 44 Movement and the Front for the withdrawal of French military bases (GASSI), has once again highlighted the increasing demands for historical justice and the call for reparations from the former colonial power.