World War II

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'Digging Frenzy' for Nazi Treasure Comes to a Halt

Search for jewels, gold, silver rumored to be buried near tree in Dutch town of Ommeren is called off

(Newser) - The "digging frenzy" is over. A treasure hunt near the Dutch village of Ommeren, prompted by the release of a map that purported to show where Nazi soldiers had buried $20 million worth of loot, has been called off, per Dutch News . A number of digs looking for the...

Remains of Airman Shot Down Over Germany in 1944 Identified

Staff Sgt. Edgar L. Mills will be buried at Arlington

(Newser) - The remains of a US airman whose plane was shot down over Germany during World War II have been accounted for, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced Monday. US Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. Edgar L. Mills, 25, of Tampa, Florida, was shot down July 18, 1944, during a bombing...

Long-Lost US Submarine Found Off Japan's Coast

USS Albacore sank about 80 years ago, with a crew of 85 sailors

(Newser) - A US military submarine that disappeared almost 80 years ago has been discovered off the coast of Japan, reports NPR . The USS Albacore was lost with a crew of 85 sailors on Nov. 7, 1944. The Navy announced that a team using autonomous underwater vehicles discovered the Albacore near the...

Poland's Fight With Germany Over Reparations Turns Nasty

'Disrespectful' Germany aims to 'treat Poland as a vassal state,' Polish minister claims

(Newser) - Poland is appealing to the United Nations for help in securing $1.4 trillion in war reparations from Germany, which describes the issue of reparations over its World War II invasion and occupation of the country as closed. Germany's latest response to Poland's request— issued last year following...

Son of Auschwitz Hero Wants Compensation
He Volunteered
to Go to Auschwitz
Nov 15, 2022 9:55 AM CST

He Volunteered to Go to Auschwitz

Witold Pilecki was executed by Poland after the war, and his son is now seeking compensation

(Newser) - The son of World War II Auschwitz death camp hero Witold Pilecki is seeking millions in compensation from the Polish government for his father's post-war arrest and 1948 execution by the country's communist authorities of the time. The case opened last week before a Warsaw court and the...

Alarming Report in Mo.: &#39;I Wouldn&#39;t Want My Child in This School&#39;
Alarming Discovery
at Mo. School 'Takes
Your Breath From You'
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Oct 22, 2022 4:15 PM CDT

Alarming Discovery at Mo. School 'Takes Your Breath From You'

Radioactive waste found at Jana Elementary, in St. Louis suburb where WWII nukes were made

(Newser) - There's significant radioactive contamination at an elementary school in suburban St. Louis where nuclear weapons were produced during World War II, according to a new report by environmental investigation consultants. The report by Boston Chemical Data Corp. confirmed fears about contamination at Jana Elementary School, in the Hazelwood School...

Max Lerner, One of Last 'Ritchie Boys,' Dead at 98

The specially trained soldiers served as interrogators, spies, and saboteurs

(Newser) - Maximillian "Max" Lerner, one of the last of the so-called Ritchie Boys, has died at age 98. According to the New York Times, he was among roughly 11,000 primarily foreign-born, German-speaking soldiers recruited to Camp Ritchie, a secret intelligence training center in Maryland during World War II. Lerner...

Poland Wants Huge War Reparations From Germany

Government to seek $1.3T, but Germany says the matter is long closed

(Newser) - Poland will seek the equivalent of some $1.3 trillion in reparations from Germany for the Nazis' World War II invasion and occupation of the country. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, leader of the ruling Law and Justice party, announced the huge claim at the release of a long-awaited report on the cost...

Caroline Kennedy Meets Kids of Islanders Who Rescued JFK
They Delivered
JFK's Distress
Note on a Coconut.
Now, Thanks
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Aug 13, 2022 5:10 PM CDT

They Delivered JFK's Distress Note on a Coconut. Now, Thanks

US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy meets with kids of Solomon Islanders who saved her dad in WWII

(Newser) - In August 1943, during World War II, a 26-year-old John F. Kennedy and his crew were shipwrecked in the Solomon Islands after a Japanese destroyer rammed into their patrol boat during the Battle of Guadalcanal. On Monday, his daughter, Caroline Kennedy, now a US ambassador to Australia, met with and...

WWII Vet, 102, Honored for Service in All-Black Mail Unit

Segregated all-female unit cleared massive backlog of letters sent to US troops in Europe

(Newser) - Millions of letters and packages sent to US troops had accumulated in warehouses in Europe by the time Allied troops were pushing toward the heart of Hitler’s Germany near the end of World War II. This wasn’t junk mail—it was the main link between home and the...

One Downed Japanese Zero Saved American Lives in WW2

The captured plane helped American forces dominate the skies over the Pacific

(Newser) - Early in World War II, Japan’s Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters ruled the Pacific skies, outmaneuvering and outfighting their Allied counterparts. The balance gradually shifted, however, and historian David Reamer credits the capture of the “Akutan Zero,” also known as “Koga’s Zero” after the pilot who...

Texas Explorer Finds the Deepest Shipwreck Ever

USS Samuel B. Roberts went down in WWII fighting Japanese warships in Philippine Sea

(Newser) - In its determined last stand in October 1944, the Sammy B took on the Japanese during a World War II battle that eventually sent it down to the ocean floor. The US Navy destroyer (official name: the USS Samuel B. Roberts) remained lost to humankind for nearly 80 more years—...

With a Big Archives Release, a Pope's Legacy Is at Stake

Current pontiff Francis orders online posting of 'Jewish' files from archives of WWII era's Pius XII

(Newser) - Pope Francis has ordered the online publication of 170 volumes of its so-called Jewish files from the recently opened Pope Pius XII archives, the Vatican announced Thursday, amid renewed debate about the legacy of its World War II-era pope. The documentation contains 2,700 files of requests for Vatican help...

After 77 Years, US Soldier Killed in WWII Identified

Pfc. Sanford Keith Bowen died fighting in France in early 1945

(Newser) - The remains of an Ohio soldier killed while fighting in France during World War II have now been positively identified, Defense Department officials announced Monday. Pfc. Sanford Keith Bowen, 26, of Ashland, was part of Company I, 3rd Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division, the AP reports. The unit...

Joy, Sadness as WWII Vets Return for D-Day Ceremony

Events were scaled down for 2 years during the pandemic

(Newser) - Joy and sadness in acute doses poured out Monday on the beaches of Normandy. As several dozen D-Day veterans—now all in their 90s—set foot on the sands that claimed so many colleagues, they are thankful for the gratitude and friendliness of the French toward those who landed here...

Review of Archives Flooded in 2011 Turns Up WWII Clue

1944 report found in archive may have led to missing American's remains

(Newser) - The remains of an American airman who went missing in action in World War II may finally be on their way home, thanks to a chance discovery of records in flood-threatened archives in Thailand. US and local authorities held a solemn ceremony Wednesday at an air base in eastern Thailand...

Crews Try to Save The Sullivans
Crews Try to Save
The Sullivans
Apr 14, 2022 7:30 PM CDT

Crews Try to Save The Sullivans

World War II destroyer, named for 5 brothers, is taking on water

(Newser) - A decommissioned World War II-era destroyer docked near downtown Buffalo was taking on water and listing perilously on Thursday. Crews were working to keep the USS The Sullivans from sinking at its berth at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, where it had been open for tours....

New Tool in Hunt for Looted Art: a Deck of Cards

Foundation creates it to highlight missing pieces plundered by the Nazis

(Newser) - A group dedicated to finishing the work of World War II's Monuments Men is betting on a deck of playing cards—and reward money—to help find missing works of art taken by the Nazis. Inspired by the US military's history of creating playing cards related to missions,...

His 'Deeply Human Act' in WWII Is Still Remembered

US military pilot Gail Halvorsen dropped sweets for children during Berlin Airlift

(Newser) - A US military pilot known as the “Candy Bomber” for his candy airdrops during the Berlin Airlift after World War II ended has died. Gail S. Halvorsen was 101 when he died Wednesday following a brief illness in his home state of Utah, surrounded by family, per the AP...

1945 Letter Finally Delivered: 'It's Like He Came Back to Me'

John Gonsalves' widow received letter intended for late husband's mother

(Newser) - A letter sent from a US soldier stationed in Germany to his mother in Massachusetts has been delivered 76 years after it was sent, per the AP . Army Sgt. John Gonsalves, 22 at the time, wrote to his mother in Woburn in December 1945 after the official end of WWII,...

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