President François Hollande was joined by a ring of other dignitaries and thousands of onlookers on Sunday to honor the nearly 150 French citizens who died in terrorist attacks in 2015, reports Deutsche Welle.
At the president's side was Paris Mayor Anne Hildago, and together they unveiled a plaque in the city's famous Place de la Republique to pay permanent homage to the victims.
The Place de la République re-emerged as a gathering place for defiance in the face of tragedy after last January's attacks on the office of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, shortly followed by a similar assault on a kosher supermarket. Paris was rocked yet again in November, when coordinated attacks on bars, a theater and a sports stadium killed 130 people.
French rocker Johnny Hallyday marked the unveiling with a performance of the song Un dimanche de janvier ('A Sunday in January') on the exact anniversary of a 1.5 million strong march taking to the same square to honor the 17 victims of the first bout of terrorist violence.
Along the millions of ordinary people were around 40 world leaders, who locked arms in a sign of solidarity with France against extremism.
Hallyday then joined the French military choir for a somber musical homage.