France is dotted by former camps where Harkis – Algerians who fought for the French during Algeria's war of independence – were housed with their families after France lost its colony. Held in bleak conditions, scores died and were buried in makeshift graves. For years, relatives have fought to locate the bodies – and this week, they came a step closer to identifying the remains of some 50 people, most of them young children, who died at one of the most infamous camps in southern France.
Pressure from Harkis' descendants, backed by historians and journalists, has driven France to order excavations at two of the main internment camps since 2023.
