It has been 77 years since the beginning of the ground battle in the Battle of Okinawa at the end of the Pacific War, in which one in four Okinawans was killed.
In Zamami Village, Kerama Islands, where the US military first landed and many residents died, bereaved families and others prayed for peace.
In the Battle of Okinawa at the end of the Pacific War, one in four Okinawans died and more than 200,000 people were killed after a fierce ground battle.
On March 26, 77 years ago, the U.S. Army began landing in Zamami Village in the Kerama Islands, about 40 km west of the main island of Okinawa, and about 1,200 people were involved in battles between Japan and the United States and so-called "group self-determination." Died.
On the 26th, flowers were handed in front of the "Peace Tower" in the village where the names of the victims were engraved, and the bereaved families prayed for peace.
Ryo Tanaka, a first-year junior high school student who lives with his 91-year-old grandmother who was forced into "group suicide" and barely survived, said, "The dying grandmother survived because the grenade did not explode. If it had exploded, I would be scared to think that I wasn't there. I want to tell the story I heard from my grandmother to the people who visited the village. "
According to Zamami Village, the number of people who have experienced the war is aging, and few people can talk about what happened at that time.