(Update) Japan Imperial Couple Make Memorial Visit to Iwo Jima 80 Years On

   Ioto, April 7 (Jiji Press)--Japan's 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 the fierce battles between Japan and the United States on the Pacific island 80 years ago.
   The day trip is the first in a series of memorial visits in Japan planned by the Imperial couple for this year, which marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
   This was the first trip to the island by an Imperial couple since 1994, when then Emperor Akihito and then Empress Michiko, now Emperor Emeritus and Empress Emerita, respectively, made a visit.
   A government plane carrying Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako left Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Monday morning and arrived at the Maritime Self-Defense Force's air station on the island, part of the Tokyo village of Ogasawara, in the afternoon. After receiving an explanation about Ioto, including on its nature, the Emperor and the Empress toured the island by car.
   The couple first stopped by the Tenzan Ireihi monument, erected by the Japanese government to remember over 20,000 Japanese people who died on the island during the Battle of Iwo Jima in the final stages of the Pacific War, part of World War II. They laid white flowers at and poured water over the monument, and then bowed deeply.

(2025/04/07-19:56)