Recalling the "unimaginable hell" of D-Day suffering, President Barack Obama paid tribute Saturday to the against-all-odds Allied landings that broke Nazi Germany's grip on France and turned the tide of history.
"The sheer improbability of this victory is part of what makes D-Day so memorable," Obama said.
He spoke under a sunny sky at the American Cemetery on cliffs overlooking Omaha Beach and other landings sites where American, British and Canadian soldiers established a beachhead 65 years ago under the withering fire of Nazi troops awaiting the Allies' cross-channel gamble.
Obama visited an American battlefield museum with his wife, Michelle; laid a wreath in honor of the fallen; greeted U.S. military members; and mingled with uniformed World War II veterans.
On Friday, Michelle Obama flew into Paris with Malia, 10, and Sasha, seven, on the children's first trip to Europe. The first lady and her daughters, who are on school holiday, will stay in Paris until Monday, staying at the US embassy not far from the Elysée Palace, where the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and his wife, Carla Bruni, spend their weekends. The President will return to Washington tomorrow.
Michelle Obama and her two daughters made a surprise visit to the Eiffel Tower.and spent about 45 minutes at the Parisian icon Friday night as President Barack Obama was arriving in Paris.