During the Tet offensive, (a large assault on South Vietnamese and US army forces by the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese army, particularly in Urban areas) a Vietcong officer by the name of Nguyễn Văn Lém was captured by ARVN marines. Lém and his wife Nguyễn Thị Lốp lived in Saigon for a time before, trading tires as a front business. During the offensive, he was instructed to assassinate High ranking NV and US officials, including Major General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan, United States Army general William Westmoreland, and South Vietnamese president Nguyễn Văn Thiệu. He was captured in civilian clothing by NV Marines and Loan, one of the people he was instructed to assassinate. The marines escorted Lém into a street where NBC and AP reporters were, Loan instructed a marine to execute Lém, but he was reluctant, so Loan withdrew a .38 Special Smith & Wesson Bodyguard revolver and pointed it at Lém. A photographer named Eddie Adams believed it to be an intimidation tactic, but took a photo regardless, snapping the exact moment Loan executed him. Other reporters recorded the execution as well on video. A marine put a Vietcong leaflet on his face to mock him, and his body was later thrown into a mass grave.
Eddie Adams photo of Léms execution by General Loan
Slavshit
Sandshit
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Missing a lot of background. That piece of shit assassin murdered a South Vietnamese LtCol in his home, along with his wife, 6 of his seven kids, and the 80 year old grandmother. He reportedly laughed and bragged about it after he was captured too. General Loan had enough of that shit and took care of business. He's a hero in my book. Even the reporter who took the images regretted the negative connotations attached to Loan afterwards.
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Thanks for the insight, if I read into it more can I edit it to add this in? I didn't read much outside of the execution as i didnt want a massive wall of text and only focus on the execution
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I saw the iconic photo a long time ago but never the video
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It was not like the guy being executed was Mother Theresa or something...he had commited serious crimes
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i never said he was lol, im not praising him in any form
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Yes I know. Just wanted to add that for people watching the video.
Me too some years ago I thought "evil General shoot helpless civilian" but then read the backstory and changed my mind
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