Okinawa marks 80 years since end of one of harshest WWII battles with pledge to share tragic history

OKINAWA marked the 80th anniversary of the end of one of the harshest battles of World War II fought on the southern island.

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With global tensions escalating, its governor said on Monday it is the Okinawan "mission" to keep telling the tragic history and its impact today.

The Battle of Okinawa killed a quarter of the island's population, leading to a 27-year US occupation and a heavy American troop presence to date.

Monday's memorial comes one day after US attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, adding to a sense of uncertainty on the island about the heavy American military presence and in its remote islands, already worried about getting embroiled in a potential conflict in Taiwan.

Gov. Denny Tamaki, noting the escalating global conflicts and nuclear threats, made a resolve to contribute to global peace studies, disarmament and the preservation of war remains. "It is our mission, as those living in the present, to preserve and pass on the reality and lessons to future generations."

Fierce battle and civilian deaths

US troops landed on the main Okinawa island on April 1, 1945, beginning a battle in their push toward mainland Japan.

The Battle of Okinawa lasted nearly three months, killing some 200,000 people - about 12,000 Americans and more than 188,000 Japanese, half of them Okinawan civilians including students and victims forced into mass suicides by Japan's military.