Reference Entry
END OF THE BATTLE OF IWO JIMA
While armies crossed rivers in Europe, Marines in the Pacific were still locked in some of the war’s most brutal island battles. United States forces had landed on Iwo Jima in February 1945, attacking a volcanic fortress where Japanese defenders used tunnels, caves, and concrete bunkers to make every yard of ground costly. The famous flag raising on Mount Suribachi took place early in the campaign, but heavy fighting continued across the northern part of the island for weeks.
Dated Historical Context
A RECORDED MOMENT IN HISTORY
Iwo Jima declared secure
While armies crossed rivers in Europe, Marines in the Pacific were still locked in some of the war’s most brutal island battles. United States forces had landed on Iwo Jima in February 1945, attacking a volcanic fortress where Japanese defenders used tunnels, caves, and concrete bunkers to make every yard of ground costly. The famous flag raising on Mount Suribachi took place early in the campaign, but heavy fighting continued across the northern part of the island for weeks. On March 26th, 1945, the island was finally declared secure after a last, desperate counterattack by remaining Japanese troops. The victory had come at staggering cost, with thousands of Marines killed and many more wounded, and almost the entire Japanese garrison destroyed. In the months that followed, Iwo Jima’s airfields served as emergency landing sites for damaged B-29 bombers returning from raids on Japan, providing a grim but life-saving payoff for a hard-fought operation.
Read the complete weekly DispatchTrackpads Source Register
