A city mayor has travelled to France to remember thousands of soldiers who were killed in a Second World War raid.

Brighton and Hove City Councillor Mohammed Asaduzzaman travelled to Dieppe in France to pay tribute to soldiers who died in the raid on the town in 1942.

Cllr Asaduzzaman laid a wreath at a monument in Puys Beach in the town to remember the 1,400 soldiers who died in the operation 82 years ago.

Speaking after the ceremony, the mayor said: “It is incredibly important we take the time to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of our freedoms and it was an honour to represent Brighton and Hove at the recent commemoration events in Dieppe.

“I am grateful to Mayor Langlois for his invitation. As a city we have on-going bond with our friends in Dieppe and it was a privilege to continue strengthen those ties.”

Cllr Asaduzzaman spent two days in the Northern French town after being invited by the Mayor of Dieppe, Nicolas Langlois.

On August 19 the seaborne raid launched by Allied forces on the German-occupied French port of Dieppe was seen as disastrous. The Russians were urging the Allies to relieve the pressure on them by opening a second front in north-west Europe.

The British Chief of Combined Operations, Rear Admiral Louis Mountbatten, was interested in a practical trial beach landing for his troops. Winston Churchill decided that Operation Rutter, a 'hit and run' raid on Dieppe, should go ahead.

But the Allies suffered huge losses and the failure led to the decision for the D-Day landings to target beaches as opposed to existing ports.

After nine hours of heavy fighting, the Allied troops pulled back.

Some 3,367 Canadians and 275 British commandos were killed, wounded or taken prisoner. The Royal Navy suffered 550 dead and wounded and there were 591 German army casualties.

Recent research also suggests the raid was a cover operation for intelligence missions to steal components from German code machines such as Enigma.