The remains of thousands of U.S. soldiers buried in Africa during World War II will be returned to the U.S. and identified, the U.S. Embassy in Tunisia announced on Monday.
On Memorial Day, the U.S. and Tunisia signed a memorandum of understanding to allow the exhumation of 2,841 unknown American soldiers from the North African campaign who are buried in the North African American Cemetery in Carthage, Tunisia, in order for them to be repatriated and reunited with their families.
"We owe our fallen heroes and their families a profound debt of gratitude," Natasha Franceschi, the embassy's chargé d'affaires, said in a statement to CNN. "Today's historic agreement will ensure American service men and women who gave their lives to defend our freedom are recognized and honored for the ultimate sacrifice they gave to our country."