Japan Emperor, Empress Visit Iwo Jima to Pay Respect to War Dead

   Tokyo, April 7 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako on Monday made a visit to Ioto, widely known as Iwo Jima, to pay tribute to those who died in fierce battle on the Pacific island 80 years ago.
   The day trip is the first in a string of the Imperial couple's memorial visits in Japan planned for this year, which marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
   After leaving on a government plane from Tokyo's Haneda Airport, the couple arrived at the Maritime Self-Defense Force's air station on the island, part of the Tokyo village of Ogasawara.
   The couple are slated to visit the Tenzan Ireihi monument, erected by the central government to remember over 20,000 Japanese people who died on the island during the battle in the final stages of the Pacific War, part of World War II, and the Iwoto Islander Peace Cemetery Park, built by Ogasawara for the islanders who perished after being conscripted as civilian workers for the now-defunct Imperial Japanese military.
   The couple will also stop by at Chinkon no Oka, a memorial facility built by the Tokyo metropolitan government for both the Japanese and U.S. war dead.

(2025/04/07-13:45)