James Lewis (CIA)
James Foley Lewis (29 February 1944—18 April 1983) was an American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer killed in the 1983 United States embassy bombing in Beirut, Lebanon. Early life He was born in Coffeeville, Mississippi on 29 February 1944 to James Forrest Pittman and his wife Antoinette as James Forrest Pittman Jr. His father was serving as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division at the time of his birth. In 1952 Forrest Pittman abandoned his wife and their 4 children who subsequently moved to Gulfport, Mississippi. His mother remarried George Lewis in 1959 and James was adopted by his stepfather as James Foley Lewis. Military career Lewis joined the United States Army on 28 February 1962 and qualified as a Green Beret. In 1967 he was serving with the MIKE Force in South Vietnam. During his service in Vietnam, Lewis was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, Bronze Star 4 times with Combat V Device, the Purple Heart twice and the Air Medal. CIA career Due to his ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Coffeeville, Mississippi
Coffeeville is a town in and one of two county seats of Yalobusha County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 905 at the 2010 census. It is named after John Coffee (1772 – 1833), a planter and military leader. The minor American Civil War Battle of Coffeeville took place near here in December 1862. Water Valley, Mississippi, in the northeastern part of the county, is the second county seat and judicial district. Once a center of railroad shops, it is the largest city in the county. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. Demographics 2020 census As of the 2020 United States census, there were 797 people, 457 households, and 268 families residing in the town. 2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 930 people, 401 households, and 261 families residing in the town. The population density was 423.4 people per square mile (163.2/km2). There were 464 housing units at an average density of 211.3 pe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Special Forces (United States Army)
The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army. The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal missions: unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, direct action, counterinsurgency, special reconnaissance, counterterrorism, information operations, counterproliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and security force assistance. The unit emphasizes language, cultural, and training skills in working with foreign troops; recruits are required to learn a foreign language as part of their training and must maintain knowledge of the political, economic, and cultural complexities of the regions in which they are deployed. Other Special Forces missions, known as secondary missions, include combat search and rescue (CSAR), counter-narcotics, hostage rescue, humanitarian assistance, humanitarian demining, information o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vientiane
Vientiane ( , ; lo, ວຽງຈັນ, ''Viangchan'', ) is the capital and largest city of Laos. Vientiane is divided administratively into 9 cities with a total area of only approx. 3,920 square kilometres and is located on the banks of the Mekong, close to the Thai border. Vientiane was the administrative capital during French rule and, due to economic growth in recent times, is now the economic center of Laos. The city had a population of 948,477 as of the 2020 Census. Vientiane is noted as the home of the most significant national monuments in Laos – That Luang – which is a known symbol of Laos and an icon of Buddhism in Laos. Other significant Buddhist temples in Laos can be found there as well, such as Haw Phra Kaew, which formerly housed the Emerald Buddha. The city hosted the 25th Southeast Asian Games in December 2009, celebrating 50 years of the Southeast Asian Games. Etymology 'Vientiane' is the French name derived from the Lao ''Viangchan'' . The nam ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Douglas C-47 Skytrain
The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in front-line service with various military operators for many years.Parker 2013, pp. 13, 35, 37, 39, 45-47. Design and development The C-47 differed from the civilian DC-3 by way of numerous modifications, including being fitted with a cargo door, hoist attachment and strengthened floor - along with a shortened tail cone for glider-towing shackles, and an astrodome in the cabin roof.Wilson, Stewart. ''Aircraft of WWII''. Fyshwick, ACT, Australia: Aerospace Publications Pty Ltd., 1998. . During World War II, the armed forces of many countries used the C-47 and modified DC-3s for the transport of troops, cargo, and wounded. The U.S. naval designation was R4D. More than 10,000 aircraft were produced in Long Beach and Santa Monica, Ca ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Buôn Ma Thuột
Buôn Ma Thuột () (formerly Lac Giao) or sometimes Buôn Mê Thuột or Ban Mê Thuột, is the capital city of Đắk Lắk Province in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. Its population was 420,000 in 2016, and grew to 502,170 by 2018. The city is the largest in Vietnam's Central Highlands region, and is famous as the regional "capital of coffee". Buôn Ma Thuột is served by Buôn Ma Thuột Airport. Geography The city is located at 12.6667° N 108.0500° E, right at the heart of the Central Highlands of Vietnam, 1300 km from Hanoi, 500 km from Da Nang, and 350 km from Ho Chi Minh City. Lying on a fairly flat highland, at an average height of above sea level, Buôn Ma Thuột has a vital role in Vietnam's national security and defense system. Buôn Ma Thuột is the capital of Đắk Lắk Province and also the biggest city in the Central Highlands region (Tây Nguyên). History In 1904 Đắk Lắk Province was established by the French and Buôn Ma Thuột was sele ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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United States Agency For International Development
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 billion, USAID is one of the List of development aid country donors, largest official aid agencies in the world and accounts for more than half of all U.S. foreign assistance—the highest in the world in absolute dollar terms. Congress passed the Foreign Assistance Act on September 4, 1961, which reorganized U.S. foreign assistance programs and mandated the creation of an agency to administer economic aid. USAID was subsequently established by the executive order of President John F. Kennedy, who sought to unite several existing foreign assistance organizations and programs under one agency. USAID became the first U.S. fo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sơn Tây Prison Camp
The Sơn Tây prison camp was a POW camp operated by North Vietnam near Sơn Tây and approximately west of Hanoi in the late 1960s through late 1970 and again in 1975. About 65 US prisoners of war were held there during the middle of the Vietnam War. It was later used to house foreigners captured in South Vietnam during the 1975 Spring Offensive. Operation Ivory Coast On 21 November 1970, a US military force raided the camp in an attempt to rescue US POWs, however, the camp was found to have no POWs, as they had been secretly moved several months previously. 1975 In April/May 1975, the camp was returned to use when CIA agent James Lewis was taken there after being captured at Phan Rang Air Base on 16 April 1975 during the People's Army of Vietnam Spring Offensive. Lewis was joined several months later by 13 others including Paul Struharik, an AID official captured at Ban Me Thuot, Australian journalist Peter Whitlock, graduate student Jay Scarborough and missionaries J ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Phan Rang Air Base
Phan Rang Air Base (also called Thành Sơn Air Base) is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) ''(Khong Quan Nhan Dan Viet Nam)'' military airfield in Vietnam. It is located north-northwest of Phan Rang – Tháp Chàm in Ninh Thuận Province. Initially built by the Imperial Japanese Army about 1942, the airfield was also used by the French Air Force (french: Armée de l'Air, links=no) during the First Indochina War then abandoned in 1954. The United States rebuilt the airfield in 1965 and it was used by the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) and the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War in the II Corps Tactical Zone of South Vietnam. It was seized by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) in April 1975 and has been in use by the VPAF ever since. Origins The airfield at Phan Rang was used by the Japanese during World War II. In the late 1940s and early 1950s the French Air Force used the same runway, and abandoned the facility when French control over Indochina ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nguyễn Vĩnh Nghi
Lieutenant General Nguyễn Vĩnh Nghi was an officer of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. He served as the commander of IV Corps, which oversaw the Mekong Delta region of the country, from 4 May 1972 until 30 October 1974, when he was replaced by Major General Nguyễn Khoa Nam.Tucker, pp. 526–533.Nguyễn Công Luận ''Nationalist in the Viet Nam Wars'', 2012 "After the conference, General Huỳnh Văn Cao, commanding officer of the Polwar (General Political Warfare Department), and his chief of staff, Colonel Nguyễn Vĩnh Nghi, approved my transfer to their GPWD." Early life and family He was born in October 1932, in Gia Dinh (a district of Ho Chi Minh City ). He graduated from a French program high school. His wife is Kim Tuyet (daughter of Ms To thi Than, former Chairman of the National Vietnamese Women Association and former Chairman cum Editor of the daily newspaper ‘Saigon Moi’). Military career 1951: He enlisted into the Dalat National Army Academy, class ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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1975 Spring Offensive
The 1975 spring offensive ( vi, chiến dịch mùa Xuân 1975), officially known as the general offensive and uprising of spring 1975 ( vi, Tổng tiến công và nổi dậy mùa Xuân 1975) was the final North Vietnamese campaign in the Vietnam War that led to the capitulation of Republic of Vietnam. After the initial success capturing Phước Long Province, the North Vietnamese leadership increased the scope of the People's Army of Vietnam's (PAVN) offensive and captured and held the key Central Highlands city of Buôn Ma Thuột between 10 and 18 March. These operations were intended to be preparatory to launching a general offensive in 1976. Following the attack on Buôn Ma Thuôt, the Republic of Vietnam realized they were no longer able to defend the entire country and ordered a strategic withdrawal from the Central Highlands. The retreat from the Central Highlands, however, was a debacle as civilian refugees fled under fire with soldiers, mostly along a single h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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People's Army Of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the armed wing of the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam. The PAVN is a part of the Vietnam People's Armed Forces and includes: Ground Force, Vietnam People's Navy, Navy, Vietnam People's Air Force, Air Force, Vietnam Border Guard, Border Guard and Vietnam Coast Guard, Coast Guard. However, Vietnam does not have a separate Ground Force or Army branch. All ground troops, army corps, military districts and specialised arms belong to the Ministry of Defence (Vietnam), Ministry of Defence, directly under the command of the Central Military Commission (Vietnam), Central Military Commission, the Minister of Defence (Vietnam), Minister of Defence, and the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army. The military flag of the PAVN is the flag of the Socia ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nha Trang
Nha Trang ( or ; ) is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa Province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bounded on the north by Ninh Hoà town, on the south by Cam Ranh city and on the west by Diên Khánh District. The city has about 392,000 inhabitants, a number that is projected to increase to 560,000 by 2015 and 630,000 inhabitants by 2025. An area of of the western communes of Diên An and Diên Toàn is planned to be merged into Nha Trang which will make its new area based on the approval of the Prime Minister of Vietnam in September 2012. Nha Trang is well known for its beaches and scuba diving and has developed into a popular destination for international tourists, attracting large numbers of backpackers, as well as more affluent travelers on the south-east Asia circuit; it is already very popular with Vietnamese tourists, with Nha Trang Bay widely considered as among the world's most beautiful bays. Tourists are welcomed to participate in the Sea Fest ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |