Mass Graves Discovered on Ioto/Iwo Jima
The island of Iwo Jima, recently receiving a pronunciation correction to Ioto in 2007, saw the recent discovery of two mass graves as reported by Japanese officials on 22 Oct 2010. The Kyodo news agency estimated that the larger of the two sites might hold the remains of up to 2,000 Japanese soldiers and the smaller up to 200, but the Japanese health ministry declined to comment on the size of these graves, noting that only 51 bodies had been recovered. The island was defended by a 21,000-strong garrison that fought nearly to the last man in Feb and Mar 1945; less than 1,000 Japanese survived the battle, and the remains of more than half of the 20,000 killed were never found. The current discovery would represent a large step toward finding those that are still listed as missing in action.
For more information:
MSNBC: Mass graves discovered on Iwo Jima
WW2DB: Battle of Iwo Jima
WW2DB: Japan Changes Iwo Jima Pronunciation to Ioto
Special thanks goes to WW2DB contributor Jimmy Lebel for sharing the news of this discovery.
Back to Main | Back to 2010 News Index
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
- » WW2DB's 16th Anniversary (29 Dec 2020)
- » Hidekazu Tamura shared his feelings toward his war time internment (2 Sep 2020)
- » WW2DB's 15th Anniversary (29 Dec 2019)
- » Japan and Russia to continue negotiations on the Kuriles territorial dispute (22 Nov 2019)
- » Wreck of Akagi Found (21 Oct 2019)
- » Wreck of Kaga Found (18 Oct 2019)
- » See all news
- » 1,094 biographies
- » 332 events
- » 38,156 timeline entries
- » 1,126 ships
- » 337 aircraft models
- » 190 vehicle models
- » 352 weapon models
- » 117 historical documents
- » 225 facilities
- » 464 book reviews
- » 27,151 photos
- » 351 maps
Joachim von Ribbentrop, German Foreign Minister, Aug 1939