When you hear about the POWs of Vietnam, you immediately think about questions like, how many are still alive?, how long were they imprisoned, and were they sheltered in trees? But the reality is far different. The vast majority of POWs who survived the war remain alive today. The public’s response to this raid was mixed, as many people called it a major escalation in the war and claimed that POWs were in danger. Many of the POWs from other locations were transferred to Hoa Lo Prison, which was nicknamed the “Hanoi Hilton” by its POWs. Prisoners who survived the war remarked on how safe the prison was, as they were assigned cell mates, had assigned duties, and even had church services.
How many POWs from Vietnam are still alive?
In the Eighties, the Pentagon estimated that over two thousand US POWs were missing in action. Today, there are about 1,600 unaccounted for. In addition, more than six hundred POWs from the Vietnam War are still alive, according to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. North Vietnam has admitted to killing 55 servicemen and seven civilians while they were captives, but does not publicly confirm the number. Hanoi POWs attempted to keep a register of captured Americans. Those POWs were held in four Hanoi prisons and six facilities within 50 miles. Despite the hardships of being held captive, no POWs had managed to escape.
Although official U.S. government investigations have been conflicted, most military personnel remain missing in Vietnam, as there is no physical evidence to back up their claims. However, the government prefers to focus its search efforts on the so-called “discrepancy cases,” where the American servicemen were believed to still be alive after losing contact with American forces. Despite the controversy over the issue, the number of American POWs who remain in Vietnam is low.
Who was the longest POW in Vietnam?
The title of “Longest Prisoner of War in Vietnam” was held by a Navy pilot who was captured in 1970. He was sentenced to five years in solitary confinement and never saw another American for nearly five years. When the conflict ended, he was mistakenly named the longest POW, but his record was corrected months later. He was released with other POWs during Operation Homecoming.
In January 1973, President Richard Nixon made a speech stating that he would not release the names of U.S. POWs. The statement was meant to highlight the fact that he believed the American war dead were buried in the jungle. The official report of the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs was issued in July, but it was not made public until December. The committee’s findings contradicted those of the previous report, and many veterans of the war spoke out against the government. Despite this, the committee ultimately found that Brace had remained in North Vietnam after the peace accords, and he had been buried there for seven days.
Although the prison system was designed to keep the POWs in captivity, the Vietnamese were not able to tap the prisoners’ cell phones to listen to their conversations. But the prisoners’ faith in the Lord was one of their most valuable survival tools. Robinson said that he knew other POWs who had also endured the same ordeals, and the 23rd Psalm was commonly passed. Despite his lengthy prison stay, he said he never felt alone because of his faith.
How brutal were the Viet Cong?
The Viet Cong were a network of communist agents that operated in South Vietnam. They were controlled from North Vietnam, but had a presence throughout the country. While the Geneva Accords ordered the withdrawal of military personnel from South Vietnam, many Viet Minh sympathisers and soldiers remained in South Vietnam. A lot of the victims of the Viet Cong’s atrocities were civilians.
In one case, a VC unit shelled a market in the town of Tan Uyen, a village in Bien Hoa Province, killing three civilians. Another incident involved a VC raid on a village in Gia Dinh Province, where a school teacher, two males, and a hamlet chief were captured. The VC also sacked a school and killed twelve students and a teacher in Phuoc My, a village in Quang Tin Province. In another case, a grenade attack in an agricultural field in An Lac, An Giang Province, killed three civilians and injured 46 others. Despite the fact that there are many unreported cases, many of the VC’s attacks against civilians were horrific.
The Vietnam Cong used small arms cartridges called toe-poppers. These were bamboo tubes over nails, and they were camouflaged. When pressure was applied to the bullet, it ignited the primer and blew up, creating an opportunity for an ambush. These explosives often killed soldiers and civilians, but they were deadly depending on the shell size. It is not surprising that some Vietnamese soldiers were seriously wounded or killed after coming under fire.
Did Vietnamese soldiers hide in trees?
Did Vietnamese soldiers hide in trees during the Vietnam War? During the war, trees hid the trail of the Ho Chi Minh from American planes and aid. It was the Viet Cong who hid in the jungle, using it as a camouflage strategy. Trees evolved from tiny plants over time, beginning 470 million years ago. They have evolved to cover huge distances before dawn, carrying water from roots to leaves.
In fact, the Viet Cong had an extensive underground tunnel network stretching for over two hundred miles. They hid in trees and used them as hospitals, armouries, sleeping quarters, kitchens, and wells. In this way, they were able to disguise themselves and evade American forces. These tunnels were a safe haven for thousands of Viet Cong and helped them fight the guerrilla war.
It is difficult to estimate the number of Vietnamese who hid in trees during the war. Both sides relied heavily on outside sources for their operations. The United States drastically cut aid to South Vietnam, while North Vietnamese supporters increased their support. Despite superior conventional weapons, the US army was ineffective in a non-industrialized country with dense jungle. So the question arises: Did Vietnamese soldiers hide in trees? If so, why?
When was the last POW found in Vietnam?
When was the last POW found in Vietnam, and where? The Vietnam War ended almost 20 years ago. The war was long and bloody, and American soldiers were caught and held in Southeast Asia. The United States military’s intelligence agencies had lists of nearly 300 missing men in the Hanoi-dominated country. Laotian military units intercepted radio messages regarding American POWs. The messages mentioned that the men were being transferred to other locations.
After the Paris Peace Accords ended the U.S. involvement in the war in Vietnam, the Hanoi government reported that it held 591 American servicemen. This statement heightened the family’s fears. The Missing Persons Act of 1942 required automatic status reviews for all servicemen after one year, so any POW who was not found was considered KIA. But a new investigation is now underway to find out what happened to the remaining prisoners.
In the early 1970s, American soldiers captured in South Vietnam were moved from prisons to camps in the mountains. The first prison the men were sent to was Quang Nam Province. It was a mountainous country that made food scarce and living conditions very poor. The guerrillas were using their “reeducation” classes and forcing the dissidents to commit “confessions.” American POWs were also targeted.
What tactic did the Viet Cong use?
The PAVN/VC favored tactics such as ambushes and booby traps. This style of attack used small formations to spread out across a broad area, allowing the enemy to withdraw slowly. It also employed set-piece assaults, which were designed to wear down an enemy by causing them to lose a large number of men. It also employed booby traps and controlled mines to stall the enemy’s advance.
One of the main ways in which the Viet Cong won the war against the USA was by guerrilla warfare. The Vietcong fought in small units in the countryside, leaving the population centers to the government. Their main objective was to wear down the enemy’s morale, so that they could retreat when they were tired. This tactic was particularly effective against infantry, which was often accompanied by women and children.
Another tactic the VC used was to confuse their opponents by using shifting unit numbers. By 1969, most VC formations were made up of northern soldiers. The communists also used shifting unit numbers, which confused US and ARVN order of battle experts. Therefore, the distinction between the VC and the NVA is not clear. However, the Viet Cong resorted to this tactic to confuse their enemies and the allied forces.
How many Vietnam vets are still missing?
Almost half of all Americans missing in the Vietnam War remain unaccounted for. Although many of the Americans remain MIA, not all of their bodies have been recovered. The Defense Department’s Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) has been assigned the responsibility of tracking down missing Americans. As of May 2020, there are 1,587 American service members still missing in Southeast Asia. As of today, only 51 of the missing are American.
Since the end of the war in Vietnam, over 1,741 American service members remain missing. Ninety percent of these men and women died in the war. This number includes American prisoners of war. Of the Vietnam War, over a million U.S. service members were killed and nearly a quarter million were wounded. Approximately 2,500 were captured and held as prisoners of war. Nearly one hundred thousand remain unaccounted for.
The CDC Vietnam Experience Study Mortality Assessment shows that Vietnam veterans were more likely to die of suicide than non-veterans during their first five years after leaving the military. However, after the initial five-year post-service period, the rates of suicide among Vietnam vets decreased. This report also suggests that more Americans are still missing than ever. Some people claim that the number of missing is as high as 500,000, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Does the Viet Cong still exist?
The Viet Cong was a communist political organization in South Vietnam. The term “Viet Cong” is a contraction of Viet Nam Cong-san, or the “Viet-Nam Communist Party”. The name originated from the war in North Vietnam, and the word is the first use of the term in English. The group included regular army units and a network of peasants’ cadres. American soldiers commonly called the Viet Cong “Victory Charlie,” which is a reference to the NATO phonetic alphabet and to communist forces in general.
The Viet Cong were armed with powerful AK-47s, Soviet-made rifles that were equivalent to the M-16 that American forces used in their war with the North. They also had submachine guns, rocket launchers, and grenades. In the 1960s, the U.S. military provided the South Vietnamese armed forces with old World War II castoffs. The NLF, which calls for peaceful unification, launched a major offensive in 1968, which included the US embassy in Saigon.
About The Author
Wendy Lee is a pop culture ninja who knows all the latest trends and gossip. She's also an animal lover, and will be friends with any creature that crosses her path. Wendy is an expert writer and can tackle any subject with ease. But most of all, she loves to travel - and she's not afraid to evangelize about it to anyone who'll listen! Wendy enjoys all kinds of Asian food and cultures, and she considers herself a bit of a ninja when it comes to eating spicy foods.