World War II

How The Phantom Became A Symbol For Papua New Guinea Warriors

While the Phantom may have never reached the American icon status of contemporaries like Batman and Superman, in the Independent State of Papua New Guinea (PNG), he is the most popular superhero by far, and his influence is felt throughout the culture. Debuting in a comic strip by Lee Falk in 1936, the Phantom is considered by many to be the first costumed superhero. Beyond comic books and strips, the Phantom has been used in PNG public service promoting everything from literacy, to nutrition, to safe sex.

American author to walk PNG’s war trail

The Kapa Kapa Trail was used by American soldiers during World War II in 1942.

Campbell wrote the book Ghost Mountain Boys, which is about soldiers who marched over the 10,000-foot Owen Stanley Mountains to protect the right flank of the Australian army during the battle for New Guinea.

In 2006, Campbell followed the footsteps of the Ghost Mountain Boys and shot a documentary film in the process.

His fascination with PNG, which he has visited five times, and the war in the South Pacific, led him to the story of the Ghost Mountain Boys.

China's first aircraft carrier in Western Pacific drill

It is the first time the Liaoning has been deployed to "distant sea waters", state media report.

Canada announces money for refuges, but not taking more in

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government announced Saturday that Canada will provide $100 million in additional humanitarian assistance for Syrian refugee camps but there was no announcement to resettle more refugees in Canada.

Canada has taken in 2,500 refugees. The government announced in January it would accept 10,000 over three years and promised in August to accept an additional 10,000 over four years.

Japanese-American WWII war hero Ben Kuroki dies

   

Kuroki died Tuesday at his Camarillo, California, home, where he was under hospice care, his daughter Julie Kuroki told the Los Angeles Times on Saturday.

The son of Japanese immigrants who was raised on a Hershey, Nebraska, farm, Kuroki and his brother, Fred, volunteered for service after the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor.

China parade draws Putin, but few other major world leaders

 After them, the wattage gets pretty low.

Beijing says the attendance of 30 overseas leaders from countries ranging from Mongolia to Egypt to Venezuela is a sign that China's long-undervalued contributions to that victory in 1945 are finally getting their proper due.

Men claim to find Nazi train loaded with treasure in Poland

 The men are demanding 10 percent of its value in exchange for revealing its location.

Historians say the existence of the train has never been conclusively proven, but authorities are not passing up this chance at possibly recovering treasures that locals and the government have sought for 70 years.

Queen Elizabeth II leads ceremonies in Britain for WWII victory over Japan

The monarch and other members of the royal family commemorated the event at a church service at St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, joined by veterans of the conflict and former prisoners of war.

Some in the crowd dabbed their eyes during the solemn ceremony that recalled the pain and the memory of those who had perished.

US, Japanese cities mark WWII end with Pearl Harbor ceremony

Mayors and city council members from Honolulu and Nagaoka on Friday joined the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in laying wreaths at Pearl Harbor.

Fireworks resembling white chrysanthemum flowers were launched at the end of the ceremony. White chrysanthemums are often presented at memorial services in Japan to honor the dead.

German authorities seize tank, other WWII weapons in raid

Kiel prosecutor Birgit Hess said the collector, whose name she would not release for privacy reasons, is being investigated for possibly violating German weapons laws but remains free while the probe is ongoing.

In the search Wednesday and Thursday investigators also seized a torpedo and multiple other military items in addition to the Panzer V "Panther" tank and the 88mm flak gun, Hess told The Associated Press. German military engineers were called in to haul the tank out of the underground garage of the house in Kitzeberg, near Kiel.