US

85-year-old Korean War vet arrives home in Calif. after weekslong detention in North Korea

Associated Press
Published | Updated

U.S. tourist Merrill Newman arrives at Beijing airport Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013 after being released by North Korea. North Korea deported Newman who was detained for more than a month, apparently ending the saga of his return to the North six decades after he advised South Korean guerrillas still loathed by Pyongyang. North Korea made the decision because the 85-year-old Newman had apologized for his alleged crimes during the Korean War and because of his age and medical condition, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, CREDIT MANDATORY (The Associated Press)

U.S. tourist Merrill Newman smiles upon arrival at Beijing airport Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013 after being released by North Korea. North Korea deported Newman who was detained for more than a month, apparently ending the saga of his return to the North six decades after he advised South Korean guerrillas still loathed by Pyongyang. North Korea made the decision because the 85-year-old Newman had apologized for his alleged crimes during the Korean War and because of his age and medical condition, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, CREDIT MANDATORY (The Associated Press)

U.S. tourist Merrill Newman arrives at Beijing airport Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013 after being released by North Korea. North Korea deported Newman who was detained for more than a month, apparently ending the saga of his return to the North six decades after he advised South Korean guerrillas still loathed by Pyongyang. North Korea made the decision because the 85-year-old Newman had apologized for his alleged crimes during the Korean War and because of his age and medical condition, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, CREDIT MANDATORY (The Associated Press)

An 85-year-old U.S. veteran of the Korean War who was detained for several weeks in North Korea has arrived home in California.

Merrill Newman landed in San Francisco on Saturday morning on a flight from Beijing.

Newman was detained in late October at the end of a 10-day trip to North Korea, a visit that came six decades after he oversaw a group of South Korean wartime guerrillas during the 1950-53 war.

Last month, Newman read from an awkwardly worded alleged confession that apologized for, among other things, killing North Koreans during the war. Analysts questioned whether the statement was coerced, and former South Korean guerrillas who had worked with Newman and fought behind enemy lines during the war disputed some of the details.

North Korea cited Newman's age and medical condition in allowing him to leave the country.