Secret way US prisoner of war sent out chilling message when being forced to answer questions in propaganda broadcast

Warning: This article contains descriptions of torture which some readers may find distressing.

A US military officer took a bold risk after being captured as a prisoner of war in Vietnam and forced to read a message for a propaganda video.

On July 18, 1966, US Navy Commander Jeremiah Denton Jr was shot down over North Vietnam and became a prisoner of war.

A year later, he was set up to be interviewed by a reporter as part of a propaganda campaign designed to show that prison guards weren't breaking an human rights laws. However, despite telling reporters that he received 'adequate food, clothing and medical care', his eyes told a different story:

In 1965, Denton was leading a twenty-eight aircraft bombing mission in North Vietnam on a military installation when his A-6A Intruder jet was shot down by enemy forces near Hanoi.

Denton and his bombardier Bill Tschudy were forced to eject from their aircraft and parachute to the ground, only to then be captured and imprisoned - Denton one of the earliest and highest-ranking officers to be taken prisoner in the northern region of the communist country.

When quizzed by the reporter for the propaganda campaign, he refused to bow down to his captor's demands over what he should say.

When asked for his view on the actions of the US government, he said: "I don't know what is happening but whatever the position of my government is, I support it. Whatever the position of my government, I believe in it, yes, sir. I am a member of that government, and it is my job to support it, and I will as long as I live."

And not only that, but he also took the risk of trying to send a message out to anyone in the US who may lay eyes on the recording.

Jeremiah Denton was locked up and tortured for seven and a half years (Creative Commons)

Denton blinked in morse code to reveal the truth about his confinement - and being tortured - to those in the US, by spelling out the word 'torture'.

The secret code and show of outward continued support to his country and government was made despite knowing he would be tortured once the camera stopped rolling.

The American soldier's defiance never wavered, despite the fact that he was kept in various POW camps for seven and a half years - four of which were spent in solitary confinement, locked in a tiny cell with no windows.

In a 1979 interview with the LA Times, Denton opened up about the torture he endured while locked behind bars.

"They beat you with fists and fan belts," he said. "They warmed you up and threatened you with death. Then they really got serious and gave you something called the rope trick."

Hundreds of US troops were held captive as POWs. (Creative Commons)

He explained that the rope trick saw officers using ropes to cut off the circulation in his limbs, leaving him with no feeling in his fingertips and suffering from painful muscle spasms.

In 1973, both Denton and Tschudy were released as part of Operation Homecoming, which saw the return of 591 American POWs who had been held by North Vietnam.

The operation followed the Paris Peace Accords which ended the US's involvement in the horrific years-long conflict.

Denton went on to serve as the US Senator representing Alabama from 1981 to 1987, and passed away in 2014 aged 89.