Key player in the Belgian resistance whose work on the Comet escape line helped to save many stranded airmenOn Monday 3 January 1944, Raymond, an agent of the Comet escape line, was waiting for `Michou` at the entrance to the underground passage at the Place Rogier in Brussels. She soon appeared, a slight girl with the face of a child. Intelligence and malice twinkled in her eyes. She was dwarfed by her two companions, both RAF pilots, making her seem even smaller than her 5ft. They all passed unobserved in the bustling crowd. Michou, her `kids` safely delivered, disappeared.This episode, cited by `Colonel Rémy` (Gilbert Renault) in his three-volume history of the Comet line, illustrates the work undertaken by Micheline Dumon, known as `Michou` or `Lily`, who has died aged 96. Founded by Andrée de Jongh in 1941, the Comet line helped hundreds of British and American airmen escape from occupied Belgium. Once they had been located by Comet agents, the airmen had to be clothed and hidden until they could be shepherded to neutral Spain to make their way back to England. Continue reading...
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