Asia-Pacific

Mass graves reported at WWII Japanese battle site

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-10-22 15:38

TOKYO - Two mass graves that may hold the remains of thousands of Japanese soldiers have reportedly been discovered on the Japanese island of Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest and most iconic battlesites of World War II.

Officials and Japan's Kyodo news agency say that a team of Japanese searchers has discovered 51 remains in two areas listed by the US military after the war as enemy cemeteries, one of which could contain as many as 2,000 bodies.
The team was to report its findings later Friday to the prime minister's office.

The monthlong battle in 1945 pitted American soldiers against the 22,000 Japanese soldiers who were defending the island. Virtually all the 22,000 Japanese soldiers were killed.