Memorial services held for soldiers killed in Bien Hoa airport battle

The southern province of Dong Nai on July 12 held a ceremony to commemorate soldiers who died in Bien Hoa airport battle in 1968 and re-bury the newly-found remains of the fallen soldiers.
The ceremony to commemorate soldiers who died in Bien Hoa airport battle in 1968 and re-bury the newly-found remains of the fallen soldiers in Dong Nai province (Source: VNA)
The ceremony to commemorate soldiers who died in Bien Hoa airport battle in 1968 and re-bury the newly-found remains of the fallen soldiers in Dong Nai province (Source: VNA)

The event was attended by Politburo member and head of the Party Central Committee’s Information and Education Commission Vo Van Thuong, Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, along with many officials of the defence ministry and Dong Nai province, and relatives of the fallen soldiers from 23 cities and provinces.

Delivering an eulogy at the event, Secretary of Bien Hoa city Party Committee Le Van Danh said Bien Hoa airport, with its location at the northeast gate of Sai Gon (now Ho Chi Minh City), was a key battlefield in the southeast region. 

In a surprising attack in the US Bien Hoa air base on January 31, 1968, many revolutionary soldiers lost their lives. 

Thanks to information from Vietnamese war veterans and two US war veterans who participated in the burial of the killed soldiers at that time, the Steering Committee on Search, Collection and Excavation of Martyrs’ Remains (also known as Steering Committee 1237) in Dong Nai province found a mass grave to the east of the airport on April 13.

Remains and belongings of the soldiers were discovered at the site.

Colonel Mai Xuan Chien, an official from the provincial Military Command said that identity was verified for 72 war martyrs.

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