Decades of anguish may finally be over for families of US soldiers killed in Korean War

On the 68th anniversary of the Korean War, thousands of American families are still waiting to repatriate the remains of their loved ones, who were killed inside North Korean borders.

کد خبر: ۸۱۱۰۹۶

تاریخ: ۰۴ تير ۱۳۹۷ - ۰۸:۲۹

But the decades of frustration could finally be over for some, with US President Donald Trump claiming to have brokered a deal to bring the remains of hundreds of American soldiers home.

The sensitive issue, which has left a painful hole in families throughout America, was discussed during Trump's landmark meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong-un.

In Minnesota, this week Trump claimed North Korea had just returned the remains of 200 troops.

There was no official confirmation of Trump's announcement.

However, the US military on the weekend did confirm it was moving "assets" to an airfield near the 38th parallel, to prepare for the return of the remains of soldiers missing in action since 1963.

There are believed to be 7700 US military personnel unaccounted for from the Korean War.

Identifying the dead soldiers and connecting them to bereaved families in the US is a long and arduous process.

American woman Ruth Herbert's father, Karle Seydel, was just 24 years old when he left the US to fight in Korea.

He never returned to his wife and two young children in Seattle, Washington.

Herbert told US broadcaster CNN that the word "Korea" had been part of her life since her earliest memories.

"I'd heard that word since before I could talk," she told CNN.

Of the 7700 American soldiers unaccounted for in Korea, the US military believes the remains of 5300 are somewhere in the North.

DNA testing will play a crucial part in figuring out which families could finally be able to bury their loved ones.

Many children of Korean War veterans are now aged in their 60s and 70s, so time is of the essence.

Children, such as Herbert, have long been encouraged by the US military to provide DNA samples in case identifications are possible in the future.

It now seems, for some, the future is here.

The remains of soldiers killed in action will be lifted from the airbase in Korea to a cutting-edge facility in Hawaii.

Once there, scientists will use a variety of techniques, including DNA, to identify the remains.

Ruth Herbert's mother, Rosanne Seydel, is now aged 92.

Together, the pair hold out hope that the body of Karle Seydel, a husband and father, will be one of those missing soldiers brought home.

First Lieutenant Seydel was killed on December 7, 1950, during the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir.