About 6,000 people turned out at a southern New Mexico military installation for an event in honor of American and Filipino service members taken captive by the Japanese during the early months of the United States' involvement in World War II.
The 26th annual Bataan Memorial Death March was held Sunday at the Army's White Sands Missile Range near Alamogordo.
During the Bataan march in early 1942, thousands of prisoners were forced to walk more than 60 miles under grueling and sweltering conditions while being abused by their captors. Many died.
The Las Cruces Sun-News reports that the White Sands event was founded in the late 1980s by an Army ROTC student at New Mexico State University.
Information from: Las Cruces Sun-News.
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