Mar+&+Jun1945+Allies+capture+Iwo+Jima+&+Okinawa

Mid-1944 American bombers began making regular bombing raids on Japan. The long way that the Americans had to travel made these bombings risky. They needed bases closer to Japan in order to reduce risks. In February 1945, Allied troops landed on Iwo Jima. This battle lasted for a month, nearly 7,000 Americans died to capture this small island. They took the island in March of 1945. The capture of Iwo Jima was ordered because Allied planners believed the volcanic island would later ease operations against Japan. This would be used as an emergency air base for bombers attacking Tokyo and other important industrial cities in Japan. The rising of the American flag on Iwo Jima marked the culmination of two years of hard fighting that progressed 3,500 miles across the pacific[1].
 * Iwo Jima**



Okinawa was the next place that the Americans invaded after invading Iwo Jima. It was invaded on April 1, 1945. This battle lasted for about three months, it took 12,000 American lives but they still won while Japan lost between 100,000 and 110,000 lives[2]. This was the bloodiest land battle. It ended on June 22, 1945.This was one of the longest and coastlinest of the war. The Japanese fought until the death for the land, but they still ended up being defeated.
 * Okinawa**



Works Cited 1. [] 2. Holt, Reinhart, and Winston- Susan Ramirez, Peter Stearns, Sam Wineburg