International
Mass grave of communist soldiers uncovered in Vietnam

Hanoi, Vietnam, June 5 (AP): Authorities have discovered a mass grave containing the remains of 13 communist soldiers killed during the Vietnam War, an official said Tuesday.

The remains were believed to belong to communist commandos who were killed while attacking an American military station in October 1968, said Mai Anh Phi, vice chairman of the district People's Committee.

It took a dozen soldiers three days to recover the remains in Dai Loc District in Quang Nam province, about 850 km (530 miles) south of Hanoi, Phi said.

The remains, none of which was identified, will be buried at a district military cemetery later this week, he said.

Local authorities had tried unsuccessfully many times in the past to recover the remains, until they were tipped off recently by a former translator at the U.S. military station, he said.

Phi quoted the translator as saying the communist soldiers were bulldozed into the grave after they were killed while attacking the station.

About 1 million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans were killed in wars against France and the United States, which ended in 1975.

In addition to the dead, the government says some 3 million Vietnamese remain missing.