"It is important we take a pause and think of those American heroes who have been prisoners of war or who are still missing in action.  We humbly thank them, and their families, for their sacrifice.  We continue to pray and work to account for each and every one," Burr said.

The Department of Defense reports that there are four soldiers who fought in Iraq are currently listed as missing in action.  In addition to the four missing in Iraq, 78,000 Americans from World War II are still listed as missing in action along with 8,100 from the Korean War.  Over 1,750 from the Vietnam War are also still unaccounted for as are 120 from the Cold War and one from the first Gulf War.

To honor all of them, on Friday the POW/MIA flag of the National League of Families will be flown over the U.S. Capitol, as well as the White House, and other federal offices.

The POW/MIA flag was originally designed by an ad agency after Mary Hoff recognized the need for a symbol of those who were missing.  Her husband, Lt. Commander Michael George Hoff, was listed as missing in action in 1970 when his plane failed to return to the deck of USS Coral Sea. 

The flag itself was designed by Newt Heisley, a World War II veteran.  According to the Annin and Company website, the nation's oldest flag company and the firm that paid for the flag's design, the job came just as Heisley's son Jeff was returning from Marine training at Quantico, Virginia.  His gaunt appearance became the inspiration for the silhouette.

For more information, see: http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/