WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. Joseph A. Gala, 21, killed during World War II, was accounted for Sept. 10, 2025.
Gala was assigned to Company E, 2d Battalion, 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also known as “Merrill’s Marauders.” Gala joined the unit as part of "New Galahad" replacements sent to supplement the original group of 5307th troops ("Old Galahad") in May 1944. After arriving at the recently captured airfield in Myitkyina, Burma, Gala’s battalion advanced south from the village of Mankrin on June 16 against heavily fortified Japanese positions north of Myitkyina. Although the exact circumstances of his death were not recorded, the U.S. War Department declared Gala Killed on Action on July 14, 1944.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Gala's case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving their country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa, https://www.linkedin.com/company/dodpaa,
https://www.instagram.com/dodpaa/, or https://x.com/dodpaa.