POW news stories on Newser

Korean War POW Finally Buried After 60 Years

Fri, 27 May 2011 08:50:05 CDT

For 60 years, Artie Hodapp's family agonized over a heart-rending mystery: Where had the young man, known for his rollicking sense of humor, come to rest after dying in the Korean War? The answer was among 17 boxes of remains that the North Koreans turned over nearly two decades ago....

Great Escape Tunnel Set for Excavation

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 11:03:42 CST

It's called "George," the lesser-known tunnel of the Great Escape, and historians hope to uncover World War II equipment or personal effects when engineers excavate it. Prisoners of war dug “Tom,” “Dick,” and “Harry” for the famous 1944 escape attempt from the Nazi camp, and those who didn’t make it...

Pentagon Steps Up Hunt for Missing WWII Soldiers

Mat Probasco — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 06:26:18 CDT

After years of searching for missing US soldiers in the jungles of Southeast Asia, the military's POW/MIA Accounting Command has intensified the hunt for the 74,000 WWII troops still unaccounted for, reports the New York Times . Searching for the nearly-65-year-old remains is a race against time, however, as historians...

Solitary Confinement: Looks a Lot Like Torture

Harry Kimball — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:39:11 CDT

Rhesus monkeys raised in isolation are anti-social, catatonic, and profoundly disturbed even after they are introduced to their peers. The same is true of humans kept in solitary confinement for prolonged periods of time, whether as hostages or prisoners, writes Atul Gawande in the New Yorker . As months roll on,...

Don't Question McCain's 'Nam Heroism

Drew Nelles — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 16:24:00 CDT

There’s plenty wrong with John McCain, but questions about his heroism in Vietnam just don’t stand up, biographer Matt Welch writes in the LA Times . McCain “gave great strength to his fellow POWs,” and “unless you think that inspiring your fellow prisoners to resist and cope with unbelievable acts of...

'Right-Wing Freak Machine' Hit Me: Clark

Jonas Oransky — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 18:22:46 CDT

Wesley Clark told a netroots conference last night that he was attacked by the “great freak show” after saying John McCain’s POW experience wasn’t sufficient qualification for the presidency, the Huffington Post reports. “This is a playbook operation by the right-wing freak machine,” Clark said, “the great freak show where...

McCain's War Record Now Fair Game

Jonas Oransky — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:10:56 CDT

Wesley Clark's answer to a question on Face the Nation yesterday has exposed a simmering campaign issue, Politico reports: whether John McCain’s Vietnam ordeal translates to relevant experience for the presidency. "I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president," said...

Hanoi Captor Endorses McCain, Denies Torture

Ambreen Ali — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 09:13:53 CDT

John McCain’s Vietnam War jailer says he would vote for him because of McCain's willingness to forgive and look to the future, the AP reports. In the same breath, Tran Trong Duyet denied that McCain was tortured during his 5-year imprisonment and accused him of making up the stories to...

Vietnam Stays With McCain

Jonas Oransky — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:35:04 CDT

After 5 years as a POW, John McCain returned to Vietnam in 1974 and 1985, trips that inextricably linked him with the war in American minds. They also helped color the way he thinks about foreign policy and helped him learn to make amends with onetime enemies when it meant...