In pictures: Fall of Saigon

America's involvement in Vietnam came to an end on 30 April 1975 when the last marines were evacuated from the embassy roof and the incoming North Vietnamese Army smashed through the gates of the Independence Palace. These are pictures from those final hours:

The scramble to escape at the US embassy

North Vietnamese troops march into Saigon

The last evacuation of US troops from the embassy

NVA tanks smash through the palace gates

Triumphant soldiers raise the flag at the palace

A truck is set on fire after the fall of Saigon

South Vietnamese uniforms lie discarded in the street