19 US War Against Japan Reviewed.pdf

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extracted text: AUGUST 15, 1945 THE GUERRILLA U.S. WAR AGAINST JAPAN REVIEWED UNITED PRESS and Diplomatic relations between the United States and Japan ftH apart during 1941, and one crisis followed another. By mid-November war appeared inevitable and Saburu Kurusu, special Japanese “peace lenvoy’’, arrived in San Francisco en route to Washington, osten sibly to patch up the deeprooted differences between the two countries. “I hope to break through the line and make a tuchdown,’’ Kurusu told reporters. On Dec. 7, 1941, Kurusu and Japanese Ambassador Adm. Kichisaburo Nomura called on Secretary of State Cordell Hull •to discuss an exchange of di7 plomatic notes between the two countries. The ..visit started at 2:20 p.m. Sunday, and before it was over;. Japanese bombs had fallen on Pearl Harbor, crippling the Pacific Fleet and thrusting America into the war. ■'udn the same day—Dec. 8 west the Internatiotfál Date Line ^^OTftbs fhll-on the Philippines, <jMnf.aké: Tslarid/*' Singapore Hongkong, ahd Japanese forces invaded -Thailand and Malaya. . FDR Sends Note ..President Roosevelt, vaca tioning at Warm Springs, had hurried to Washington on Dec. 2 upon receiving an urgent te lephone call from Hull, just before the Japanese at;ck, Mr. RoseVelt sent a pre’wmal message, to Japanese Em peror Hirohito asking that war be averted. The blow at Pearl Harbor was a heavy one, Ten warships were put out of action, five of them . battleships. . Casualties were 2^343 Army and Navy per sonnel killed, 1,272 wounded and 962 missing. Most of the Army and Navy planes there— and the Philippines —• were wrecked. On Dec. 9, Japanese troops landed on the north and west coast of Luzon after widespread air attacks. The same day the Japanese bombed Singapore and tried to enter Hongkong but were driven out. Thailand ceased resistance immediately, and the international settlement at. ¿Shanghai fell to the Jap anese? Kimmel Replaced The Japanese -moved fast in the early days of the war, and on Dec. 10 the British suffered one of their greatest naval losses. The 35,000-ton Prince of Wales and the 32,000-ton Repulse were sunk by torpedo planes as they steamed north to ea^eAthe threat on Singapore by breaking up a landing on the Malay Peninsula. On Dec. 17, Adm. ¿ Husband E. Kimmel, commander at Pearl Harbor when the enemy blow, was replaced by Adm. Chester W. Nimitz. The Army commander, Lt. Gen. Walter C. Short, was replaced by Lt. Gen. Delos C. Emmons. On Dec. 20, Adm. Ernest J. King was named heá”d of- the Navy Meantime the Japanese open ed a general offensive against Hongkong, landed troops on Davao, threw thousands of re inforcements into Luzon, con centrated in Indo-China for an BY invasion of Burma, and on Dec. 17 landed troops on Borneo at the oil centers of Miri. and Lubang. . The Japanese Domei Agency disclosed then that as early as Jan. 24, 1941, Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto, commander of the Japanese combined fleets, had written: “I am looking forward by dictating peace to the Unit ed States in the White House at Washington.” Japs Bomb Manila On Dec. 24, Wake Island was reported lost after 389 defend ing Marines and seven Navy medical corps men held out for 14 days against superior for ces. They were overwhelmed after sinking seven Japanese warships including a cruiser. The Japanese bombed Mani la, causing heavy loss of life among civilians, bombed Cor regidor Fortress and demanded that America surrender. At that time Nimitz took over the crippled Pacific Fleet. Hong kong surrendered on Christmas Eve, Singapore was placed un der Martial law, and the Jap anese shelled the Celebes and seized the Gilbert Islands. On Jan. 31, 1942, Sir Archi bald P.Wavell was named Su preme Commander in the South west Pacific and he sent up headquarters at Java. Adm. Thomas C. Hart was command er of the almost non-existent Allied fleet. The Japanese by then were burning open towns and shooting civilians. On Jan. 3. the Japanese bombed Rabaul. New Britain. tra. American B-17 Flying Forts—the old type without a tail gunner—bombed Malaya. Every victory had been Jap an's until Feb. 1. Nimitz an nounced then that a task force under Vice Admiral William F. Halsey had hit six Japanese naval and air bases in the Mar shall and Gilbert Islands. Six teen Japanese ships were sunk. Dutch forces suffered losses in the bombardment of Soerabaja, and American fighting planes joined for the first time in the defense of Java. Thou sands of miles away there were fierce air battles over Rangoon with Claire Chennault’s Flying Tigers in action. On February 8. the Japanese crossed the state landinto Singapore, cap turing the fortress a week later. India The reMacArthur Carries On By Mid-January the enemy tide of conquest had swept up eight of the nine Malay States. The Japanese bombed Tarakan, oil-rich island off Borneo, and captured it almost immediate ly. Japanese and Thai soldiers invaded Burma, and others were within 90 miles of Singa pore. On Luzon, Gen. Douglas MacArthur was carrying out his skillful defense of the island against overwhelming superio rity. By Jan. 21, his forces had retreated to Bataan. Am erica sent 600,000 troops and many planes to the Pacific, but could not send them to the Phil ippines. Australian Imperials were fighting a bitter battle on New Britain, and Lee, capital of Australian New Guinea, was evacuated. The Australians ap pealed to America for aid. The situation became darker as the Japanese overran the Ce lebes and all of Borneo, swept on toward Singapore and de manded that MacArthur sur render. On Jan. 31 th3 Brit ish withdrew to Singapore Island, losing the Battle of Ma lay after 54 days of jungle fighting which was to charac terize later Pacific warfare. Halsey Strikes Waves of bombers hit Sin gapore during that time; Soerabaya, Java, was bombed and parachutists dropped on SumaRangoon Falls On Feb. 15 the Japanese in vaded Sumatra and Japanese Premier Hideki Tojo warned that Burma, China, India, the East Indies, Australia and New Zealand were next, in that or der. The American and Dutch naval forces before Java were virtually wiped out. The Jap anese bombed Darwin, Austra lia, for the first Xime. Rangoon idl and the Japanese attacked Ceylon. The Japanese Battle Fleet moved into the Bay of Bengal, and Ceylon, were threatened anew, pulse of the enemy fleet on Easter Sunday, 1942, marked the end of expansion by sea. Bataan was captured on April 9. On May 6, Corregidor surrendered and the survivors were led on the death march through Manila. MacArthur ' had reached Australia on March 17. Bitter resistance on New Gui nea slowed the Japanese for the first time and the enemy’s de feat at Milne Bay and the sub sequent battles of Buna and Gona marked the start of the road back. | An invasion force was defeated in the Coral Sea on May 9—first major naval victory for the U. S. Navy— and American production might, began to tell. On May 10 a handful of B-25 Mitchell bombers under Lt. Col. James F. Doolittle dropped a handful of bombs on Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya and Kobe. In June the Japanese Navy was decisively defeated at Mid way in a greater victory than that of the Coral Sea. On June 3 the Japanese bombed Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and on June 12 landed in the Aleutians. On August 10, Admiral King announced that American for ces had landed on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, invad ed by the Japanese earlier in the year. Months of bitter fighting on land and on sea followed before the Japanese were cleared from the area. Offensives By Dec. 14—when the Jap anese were finally thrown out of Buna—the enemy had over run a1! of Burma, Thailand, Indo-China, Malaya, Java, Bor■ neo. the Philippines, the Celebes, es were extremely light. China Threatened Meanwhile the Japanese in vaded Indira in March ,were repulsed at Kohima and Imphal, and the British began slowly driving them back to ward Rangoon. On June 5 American B-29’s began opera tions from China and on June 15 hit Japan for the-'first time. The first B-29 raid on Tokyo was made on Nov. 24 by nl.i íes operating from the Marianas. In March, Japan launched an attack designed to split China in two and force the countrv out of the war. By late fall Chungking was threatened and the Japanese had driven a wedge through central China, linking Singapore and Shang hai. Then the tide turned in that theater. By the end of 1944 the Brit ish had fleets in the Indian Ocean and in the Pacific, work ing with the Ameriacn Navy,. The year 1945 really marked the beginning of the end for Japan. MacArthur in City Early in January Nimitz and MacArthur conferred as B-29’s hit Japan and as Navy planes raided Formosa and the Manila area. On Jan. 10 MacArthur invaded Luzon, and late in the month warships began pounding Iwo Jima, 750 mile^ from Japan. The Stilwell road from Bur ma tn pitted andChina had a new route of sup plies. MacArthur entered Manila in Feb. 5, but fighting conti nued there for a month. In the same month, carrier planes raided Tokyo for the first time. MacArthur returned to Corregidor and on Feb. 19 Ma rines stormed ashore at Iwo to befin a bkody battl.? which did not end until March 17. The war looks better In Asia, too. On March 8, Chinese troops seized Lashio, terminus of the old Burma Road, and on March 9, British forces /mi tered Mandalay. The American Navy worked over Japan again, and on March 20 found the remnants of the Japanese fleet in hid ing and destroyed 475 planes and sank or damaged 30 shins. From there, the Navy went to Ryukus and began concentrat ed bombing. Japan crisis. numerous other islands and were firmly entrenched on New Guinea. Japanese submarines Were operating as far east as the American Pacific Coast and as far west as Madagascar. China was completely isolated. In 1943 the Allies began a vast pincers movement which was to press the Japanese fur ther and further back. Nfcw offensives were forming in India and Burma. American forces began the task of clearing the Aleutians, and the Army and Navy occu pied Amchitka and Adak, con structed airfields and bombed Kiska and Attu. In May, the Army landed on Attu and wip ed out the enemy in three weeks. A subsequent landing on KiAka found that the enemy had fled. While American ships were outslugging the Japanese Navy in the Solomons, submarines were busy and by mid-summer had sunk one-third of all Jap anese «hmping. MacArthur’s troops cleared Huon Peninsula on New Gui nea, feinted toward Truk and landed on New Britain. In March MacArthur invaded Dutch New Guinea, taking Hollandia and cutting off 150,000 Japanese. During the summer, remaining forces were mopped up and preparations made to enter the Philippines from Morotai. Nimitz captured Pelan, supplying a base for the Phil ippine attack. Saínan Landina On Nov. 20 American forces invaded the Gilbert Islands, and U. S. Marines and Army for ces landed on Makin and Ta rawa Atolls. Seizure of the Gilbert Islands gave needed ground facilities and long range bombers went to wdrk. On Jan. 31 the Marshall were in vaded. Then came Kwajalein and Eniwetok. On June 14 American troops landed on Saipan Island in the Marianas, 1,496 miles from Tokyo. The Japanese fleet sped to the rescue, only to. be routed in an action which cost the enemy 140 planes and 14 ships sunk. Guam was next on the invasion schedule. MacArthur in Leyte Meanwhile in the ChinaBurma-India theater military operations were stalemated. Admiral Lord Louis Mountbat ten arrived to take command of forces in outheast Asia. Lt. Gen. Joseph V. Stilwell began a drive from Assam sought through Burma to reopen a land route to China. The Brit ish began sending warships to the Indian Ocean. The return to the Philippines began in September, 1944, when Halsey destroyed a convoy rushing reserves to Mindanao, B-29’s attacked Formosa and carrier planes raked the Phil ippines. MacArthur landed on Leyte Oct. 20. and the Japan- many ese fleet came oút of hiding in " an effort to wipe out the in- vasion forces In the naval battles which gun their suicide attacks on , followed the American fleet American ■ sank or heavily damaged 58 fleet suffered losses. , Japanese warships. U. S. loss The same month had a series of cabinet FDR Dies Easter Sunday, April 1, President On American 10th Army troops— soldiers and Marines—landed on Okinawa and a vast ring was tightened about Japan. The death of Roosevelt came on April 12 even as victory was finally in sight. Tn May MacArthur invaded Borneo and Mountbatten nounced that the naign was at an two developments formally anBurma cam end. These came as Gersurrendered j and - the full might of the Allies was freed for the Pacific. By then the Japanese had be shipping and the The Jap(Conthuied oh page’ 4) THE GUERRILLA AUGUST 15, 1945 MOVE TO SEAT 2 MINORITY MEN IN SENATE STARTED Sotto, Alejandrino Boosted For Posts A move to seat two runnersup in the last national elections in the Senate was started by the Popular Democratic Party immediately after its organiza tion, authoritative circles re vealed yesterday. Opposition leaders point out that two vacancies exist in the upper chamber of Congress on a - wt of the death of the in cumbents, Senators-elect Da niel Maramba and Jose Ozamis. In case the results of the last poll have not yet been canvassed and the elected officials pro claimed, the senate list may now he revised to include those who placed twenty-fifth and twenty sixth in the senatorial race, it was explained. It was gathered that the un official reports gathered by the opposition headquarters show that Vicente Sotto gathered the highest votes among the runners-vn and Jose Alejandrino, second. Third in the list is for mer Cebu senator Filemon Sot to, it was learned. «o»--------V. S. War... (Continued from page 3) anese also were trying another offensive weanon — balloon bombs which sometimes reached America but caused no great •damage and only a few casual ties. Entire Fp. Freed In June the Chinese recap tured Foochow and began re gaining former American 14th air force bases and on June 22 the bitter Okinawa campaign ended with 11,260 Americans killed and 33,769 wotmded—the heaviest casualties of any cam paign in the Pacific. The Jap anese lost 90,401 killed. MacArthur announced in July that the entire Philippines had been liberated and that the campaign was almost closed— freeing his men for the task ahead. The Navy returned to Japan and for the first time bombed the mainland. Navy planes worked over Japanese industry and the Japanese did not strike back. Potsdam Note The air forces—20th (SuperDeutschland... (Continued from page 2) 11th month, it played a great many of his works because English and American visitors were there then and it was done for their benefit.’’ Kvam said that naturally the works banned by the Nazis are being suggested to new orchp^tras but here he is runnm» into the amusing paradox of having to criticize programs for having too many banned works. Roxas Denies... (Continued from page 1) elusions that you draw1 in that article. I challenge every statement that you make. The article is contrary to every rule of fairness which should govfern the attitude of a respecta ble and responsible newspaper. “I am openly against Fascism as you well know. I attacked Fascism in whatéver form in my first speech in the Senate when I accused the present ad ministration of embarking on a policy leading towards Fascism. I am determined to do what ever lies in my power to com bat the introduction of fascistic procedures or policies in our country. “I am not a tool of the Fas cists or of anybody. The his tory of my public service is .the best evidence of this statement, forts), 8th (Superforts), 7th, 5th and 13th—were in opera tion against the Japanese main land with everything from fighters to B-29’s and Gen. H. H. Arnold predicted that by the end of the year the Japanese would be* bombed at the rate of 2,000,000 tons a year—for heavier than Germany ever re ceived. Then on July 26, the United States, China and Great Brit ain addressed the Potsdam Pro clamation to Japan, asking her to surrender or to face utter destruction. Japan chose to ig nore the ultimatum. On the fateful Monday, Aug. 6, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, prac tically wiping out that Honshu city in one single blow. Thjee days later, on Aug. 9, Russia entered the Pacific war and started a giant powerful pincer movement against Manchuria. The second atomic, bomb of the war wrecked the biggest Kyushu city of Nagasaki on Aug. 10. The same evening, Radio Tokyo broadcast Japan’s surrender offer, asking, how ever, that the emperor be kept on the throne. The Allied re plied to the Japanese note Sat urday night, accepting the Japanese surrender on the con dition that the authority of. the emperor “shall be subject to the Supreme Commander” of the Allied forces. In view of the increasing number of the members of the Manila Night Clubs’ Fe deration, and their desire to help one another for their mutual benefits, a Special Meeting will be held today, August 15. 1945, at 9:30 A. M., at its temporary of fice at 308 España, opposite the U. S. T. Press. Among important matters to be tak en up will be the election of four additional members of tfye Board of Directors, and other important problems affecting the operation of Night Clubs. Funeral Rites.... (Continued from page 1) Francisco from .Vashington where the senator had died in a naval hospital last week. -------- so»-------De Gaulle.... (Continued from page 1) circles believe that these will be centered on France’ future role in the Far East and the big powers’ plans for central Ger many. Observers here recalled that France had already surrender offer. France also deplored the fact that French troops are not used by the Allied leaders in the Pacific war. -------- «o»--------Petain’s Fate... (Continued from page 1) Mornet has already rested his case and demanded capital pu nishment for the hero of Ver dun. The defense launched the final struggle to save Petain’s life yesterday at the 19th ses sion of the hearing. Chief de fense lawyer Fernand Payen started the legal battle by de scribing the political situation in France during the period leading up to the armistice. He will be followed by others who will try to explain charges that Petain plotted against the republic. The remainder of the defense summing up will be handled by Iro Isorni. The hearing yesterday was adjourned at 5:45 p.m. -------- <o»-------All Senators... (Continued from page 1) structed for the purpose by former Senator Sotero Baluyot, who is an engineering contrac tor by profession. He will use the same balls used in the sweepstakes lottery for the senatorial draw. I have been a consistent enemy of the vested interests i.i our country. “I have no political or ” usiness connections with Mr. An dres Soriano, much less do I have any business or political connections with any Jew. Your statement that Mr. Hemady, who by the way is not a Jew, has bought the P. Vera and Sons Press to be placed at my disposal is a brazen lie. Mr. Hemady has nothing to do with the printing press or with the Manila Daily News. “I desire to avail myself of this opportunity to state once and for all that I am not in sympathy with any Fascist group, that I am going to fight any move to introduce Fascism in the Philippines, that I am going to prevent foreigners from taking any part in poli tics in the Philippines and that I shall do everything within my power to forestall the control of our government by vested interests. “You may support any can didate that you desire. That is your privilege. But a man of your standing should be.able to find ways of electing your candidate without resorting to scurrilous libel and falsehood. As far as I am concerned, I would rather have men of your type oppose pie than be on my side. As a matter of fact, that is why, when you came to my house offering your support, I ignored your proffer and told the members of the Board of Directors of the Young Phil ippines not to include your name among those to be elect ed for the Board of Directors. “I request that this letter.be printed in your paper and giv en the prominence that you have accorded to the unsigned attack against me.” “Your truly, “(Sgd.) MANUEL ROXAS” ...SMOOTH AS VELVET... States Council... (Continued from page 1) ed with the immense task of re construction and rehabilitation, complicated by problems attend ant with independence. The recreation of the council of state, which will permit the heads of both chambers of Con> gress to participate in the for mulation of national policies, was also announced by the chief executive in his address before the law-making body. The president devoted the first part of his speech in in forming the legislature of lhe status of the war situation, be ginning with the Potsdam de claration to the eventual down fall of the “arrogant” Japanese nation. -------- co»See Malacañan.. • (Continued on pope The letter, which wa> en dorsed favorably by the head to Vicente Villamin, sently suspended: sales manager of the fifm, stated that Mrs. Engracie de Reyes “is intending to open a retail Store in Naro tas, Rizal” and as such woulct like to purchase textiles from the National Development: Com pany. As shown to the investigating committee yesterday, the docu ment contained a footnote in the Secretary Singson Encarna cion’s handwriting authorizing Mrs. Reyes to purchase “up to the amount of ?2.000.00 Sales steadfastly maintained1 in his testimony that he alone prepared the minutes and that no change thereon had been ef fected. He said that his usual practice with respect to the pre paration of minutes was to dis tribute to the directors copies of the corrected draft, which he transcribes after every meeting, on the day of the following meeting. Are you a BRIDE to be? Make your appointment early. The best Artistic Wedding Portraits are yours at moderate prices Special price for servicemen. FLORO & MORDENO 712 QUEZON BLVD. DISTRIBUTOR BLENDED & BOTTLED BY: TRANQUILINO S. ROVERO (A-l-1113)
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