Includes bibliographical references (p. 403-452) and index.

They were caged and bound like animals and often moved minutes before Special Forces raiders came looking for them. Caught in a nightmarish no-man's-land between the U.S. government and a cunning enemy, they were the American POWs in Vietnam. Based on exhaustive research from recently released government documents, Veith chronicles every aspect of the harrowing missions and the political infighting that often tragically deterred them. The result is a drama of soldiers turned into tragic pawns and haunting evidence that many may have been left behind.