Killed in action

Temporary grave of an American machine-gunner during Operation Overlord.
The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, near Colleville-sur-Mer in Normandy, France.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Killed in action (KIA or K. I. A.) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces by other hostile forces.1 The United States Department of Defense says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to hostile attack. KIA's do not come from incidents such as accidental vehicle crashes and other "non-hostile" events or terrorism.23 KIA can be applied both to front-line combat troops and to naval, air, and support troops.

Further, KIA denotes one to have been killed in action on the battlefield whereas died of wounds (or DOW) relates to someone who survived to reach a medical treatment facility. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) also uses DWRIA, rather than DOW, for "died of wounds received in action." However, historically, militaries and historians have used the latter acronym.

Societies Honoring KIA

Many societies venerate those killed in action. They set aside days of remembrance for their militaries and combat dead, and they build memorials and cenotaphs in honor of their fallen. The families of those who die in combat, especially their next-of-kin, sometimes receive preferential treatment, such as military honors, exemption from taxes, and financial awards. National militaries also distinguish those killed in action with ceremonies and awards. They also build walls and memorials to honor those who died.

See also

  • MIA – Missing in action
  • WIA – Wounded in action
  • POW – Prisoner of war

Notes

  1. ^ "U.S. Department of Defense Dictionary: killed in action". Retrieved on 2007-02-04.
  2. ^ "The 'Lectric Law Library's Legal Lexicon On * Justifiable Homicide *". Retrieved on 2007-02-04.
  3. ^ "Nolo Press Legal Definition Homicide". Retrieved on 2007-02-04.
Military stub This military-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Wikipedia content modification information:

  • This page was last modified on 28 November 2008, at 18:25.

Wikipedia Authorship and Review

Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by PediaView.com. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with PediaView.com.

Wikipedia Usage Guidelines

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Killed in action".

The URL for this specific entry is:

All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.