A tiny village has commemorated being the first Dutch place liberated from World War II occupation
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World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer is escorted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)Dutch Queen Maxima looks back from a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer, Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima drive in a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)A border marker is seen as Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima arrive by limousine to join World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer, waiting in a jeep, during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima pose for a selfie with a well-wisher during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)Dutch Queen Maxima looks back from a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer, seated left, is greeted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima before the royals joined Thayer in the jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer is greeted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima before the royals joined Thayer in the jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer sits in a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)An American flag flies from the bell tower of the church as a convoy of WWII vehicles drives the liberation route during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)A resident waves as a jeep passes during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer is greeted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima before the royals joined Thayer in the jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)Eighty years after the liberation of the south of the Netherlands, Scott Taylor, center, Ton Hermes and Maria Kleijnen stand next to the grave of Scott's grandfather Second Lt. Royce Taylor, a bombardier with the 527 Bomb Squadron, at the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, southern Netherlands, on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer flashes a thumbs up from a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer sits in a jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer is greeted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima before the royals joined Thayer in the jeep during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)
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World War II veteran Kenneth Thayer is escorted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in Mesch, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)