Editing World War II (section)

===Iwo Jima and Okinawa===
[[File:Stars_and_Stripes_on_Mount_Suribachi_(Iwo_Jima).jpg|thumb|American flag flies over Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, 1945]]
The United States captured [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima]] in February 1945. The island was psychologically important because it was traditional Japanese territory, administered by the Tokyo prefecture. It was heavily defended with many underground entrenchments, but was eventually taken by Marines after they captured Mount Suribachi, a keystone of the defense. Iwo Jima proved invaluable because of its two airfields that were used for emergency landings for B29's, and because it was close enough to provide fighter escort that could reach the Japanese Home Islands.

With the subsequent capture of [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa]] (April through June), the U.S. gained a staging ground for the final invasion of Japan. The Japanese defended the island with ground forces, kamikazes, and with the one-way suicide mission of the battleship ''Yamato'', which was sunk by American dive-bombers.  The fanatical defense resulted in heavy casualties on both sides, and many of the surviving Japanese committed suicide rather than surrender.

Amongst dozens of other Japanese cities, Tokyo was firebombed, and about 90,000 people died from the initial attack. The dense living conditions around production centers and the wooden residential constructions contributed to the large loss of life. In addition, the ports and major waterways of Japan were extensively mined by air in Operation Starvation, which seriously disrupted the logistics of the island nation.