By Tom Dare
REMARKABLE IMAGES showing the Korean War in full colour have been published as tensions in the region continue to rise once again.
Restored by colouriser Royston Leonard, the incredible images show wounded American troops on the battlefield, a group of men in prayer at a chapel and soldiers using flame throwers to torch enemy positions in the jungle.
In another image, an American soldier smiles as he reads a letter from home, while the controversial Confederate flag flies in the background.
The photos have been released as relations between the United States and North Korea reach their lowest point since the end of war.
On Monday, the United States ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, stated that “the time for talk,” with North Korea was over after the pariah state launched another missile test on Friday that they claim could reach the U.S. mainland.
The most recent test follows another missile test on July 4, America’s Independence Day, which dictator Kim Jong Un called a ‘gift’ to the Americans. Since taking power in 2011, Kim Jong Un has presided over more missile tests than both his father and grandfather combined.
North Korea can trace its roots as an autocratic state back to the Korean War, which took place between 1950 and 1953.
The conflict began when thousands of Soviet-backed North Korean soldiers invaded the American-backed South Korea, with America sending thousands of troops to the area in response.
They faced stiff opposition at first, becoming overwhelmed by the speed of the advance by North Korea, before assistance from other United Nations countries including Britain helped to stem the flow.
Chinese intervention soon brought the war to a stalemate and eventually led to a ceasefire which resulted in the division of Korea that we see today, with dictatorship North Korea now separated from the South by the 38th parallel.
No official death toll was ever recorded from the conflict, though most estimates put the number of dead at over 500,000, with approximately 40,000 Americans and nearly 2,000 Britons amongst the deceased. An official peace treaty was never signed between the North and the South, however, meaning the two are technically still at war.
