MILINET: U.S. Marine abandoned, killed - ex-Khmer Rouge
Date:
Tue, 6 Jun 2000 14:53:16 EDT
To All:
Provided FYI. This story is guaranteed to upset you. The is a
good
illustration of the "fog of war" in action. Although I was
aware that we
might have left some Marines alive on the island from various
sources, it
still upsets me because as Marines we were told from day one
that we never
leave any of our dead or wounded on the battlefield. This is
the first time
I have read an account by this particular source, a former Khmer
Rouge
platoon commander. Unfortunately, I do not have first hand
knowledge of the
operation at Koh Tang so I cannot offer an opinion a as to the
truth of the
story. I believe that our commanders did not know that any
Marines were
left alive on Tang Island. I base that belief on faith in my
fellow Marines
not knowledge. However, the story could be true, and that
really bothers
me.
Rocky
> -----Original Message-----
> From: AIIPOWMIAI@aol.com [SMTP:AIIPOWMIAI@aol.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, June 06, 2000 2:17 PM
> To: AIIPOWMIAI@aol.com
> Subject: POW: U.S. Marine abandoned, killed - ex-Khmer Rouge
>
> Advocacy And Intelligence Index
> For Prisoners Of War/Missing In Action, Inc.
> (AIIPOWMIAI@aol.com)
> Bob Necci and Andi Wolos
>
> THE POW/MIA E-MAIL NETWORK (c)
> aiijun06.00h
>
> US Marine abandoned, killed - ex-Khmer Rouge
> By Chea Sotheacheath and Phelim Kyne
> Phnom Penh Post, Issue 9/10, May 12 - 25, 2000
>
> THE former platoon commander of Khmer Rouge forces that
repulsed the May
> 15,
> 1975, US Marine assault on the offshore island Koh Tang has
told the Post
> that at least one US Marine was discovered at large on the
island 10 days
> after the American withdrawal and subsequently killed. The
revelation is
> the most concrete evidence to date that US Marines were
abandoned on Koh
> Tang during the confusion of the American withdrawal from a
battle in
> which
> 18 US servicemen remain officially "unaccountable" 25 years
later. "Ten
> days after the American soldiers left Koh Tang, a tree-cutting
detail
> sighted a figure taking water from a well," explained Mao Ran,
KR platoon
> commander on Koh Tang in 1975. "When we investigated the
area, we found
> boot marks which we knew had to belong to an American soldier
because our
> men only wore sandals." Ran immediately organized a search of
the area,
> and
> shortly after, the abandoned Marine was discovered by KR
troops. "The
> American jumped out from behind some vegetation and attempted
to attack
> one
> of our men," Ran recalled. "He was killed with a burst from
an AK-47 and
> we
> buried him nearby." Ran's admission adds credence to the
belief held by
> many
> Marines who took part in the operation of a "lost machinegun
team"
> abandoned
> alive on the island during the withdrawal. "We were told on
the USS Coral
> Sea that a machinegun team was killed by the KR as we withdrew
from the
> island, but years later, I suspect they were left behind," Koh
Tang Marine
> veteran Dale L Clark told the Post. "I believe the US
government knew the
> team was alive on the island because I heard and saw
preparations made on
> the USS Coral Sea to return to the island to recover the team
[but] no
> attempts were made ... I suspect the US government canceled
the plans not
> wanting to have any more Marines killed during the recovery."
Clark's
> suspicions were heightened by a Feb 23 Washington Times
article that
> described the three abandoned Marines - Gary Hall, Joseph
Hargrove and
> Danny
> Marshall - as having survived for several days before being
captured and
> killed. One reportedly was shot dead after being caught
stealing food
> from
> the Khmer Rouge camp, the Times reported. The other two
apparently were
> bludgeoned to death. Ran, who is now a Commune Chief in rural
Kampong
> Speu,
> denies any knowledge of surviving servicemen on Koh Tang other
than the
> one
> whose killing he witnessed. Lieutenant-Colonel Franklin
Childress, Public
> Affairs Officer of the Joint Task Force for Full Accounting of
MIAs in
> Hawaii, was unaware of Ran's allegations, but said MIA
investigators were
> closely following the case.
>
> **********************************************************
> DISCLAIMER: The content of this message is the sole
responsibility of the
> originator. Posting of this message to the POW/MIA E-MAIL
NETWORK(c)
> list does not constitute AIIPOWMIAI endorsement. It is
provided so that
> you
> may be informed of current information. AIIPOWMIAI is not
associated in
> any
> capacity with any United States Government agency or entity,
nor with any
> nongovernmental organization.
>
> **COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C.
Section 107,
> any
> copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use
without
> profit
> or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the
> included information for nonprofit research and educational
purposes only.
>
> [Ref.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ]
>
> Advocacy And Intelligence Index
> For Prisoners Of War/Missing In Action, Inc.
> 1220 Locust Avenue, Bohemia, Long Island, New York 11716-2169
USA
> Voice: (1-631) 567-9057 Fax: (1-631) 244-7097 TDD:
(1-631) 244-6996
> E-mail: BobNecci@aol.com (Bob Necci)
> andi@earthlink.net (Andi Wolos)
> Website:
http://www.aiipowmia.com/
