Modern Okinawa / The Battle of Okinawa 2/4

The Start of the Battle of Okinawa

In Okinawa, starting in 1943, military drills taught in the junior high school were intensified. . In July of the same year Prime Minister Hideki Tojo visited Okinawa, in November nurse training for girl students was begun and the student mobilization system was fully established.
After the air raids of October 10, 1945, mobilization of the students intensified, evacuation of students was no longer permitted and a system was prepared so the schools could give complete support to the armed forces. In February of 1945, male teachers and students from the middle and teaching schools were organized into the Imperial Blood and Iron Corps and the women and girls were organized into the Himeyuri Nurse Corps as nurses attached to the Japanese Haebaru infantry field hospital on the battlefields.
After the first massive bombing on September 10, 1944, the beginning of the New Year saw further intensification of the air attacks by the US forces and the conquest of Okinawa was only a matter of time.
On March 26, 1945 the U.S. forces landed on the Kerama Islands. The dreadful ground war was begun.


Entrance to the cave housing the Haebaru Infantry Field Hospital


Remains of the Himeyuri First Surgical Unit Cave
Most of the units stationed in the Kerama Islands were marine volunteers and special attack units, there were hardly any infantry troops there at all . Due to the sudden landing by U.S. forces on Kerama, the Japanese troops fled to hide in caves in the middle mountainous part of the island. After resisting as hard as they were able, the volunteer forces were completely crushed. The civilians were given orders directly and indirectly to commit suicide to avoid capture. Many civilians, with no place to escape to and in ignorant fear of the American troops, gathered together and killed themselves and their relatives and children in group suicides. In the Kerama islands the death toll from these group suicides was 329 people for Tokashiki-jima Island, 171 persons on Zamami-jima Island, and on Geruma-jima Island it was 53 people.

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