003 - Sidebar The Japanese Commander

On Sunday, March 4, 1945, the U.S. invasion of Iwo Jima entered its second week, leaving the assault forces of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Marine Divisions worn down and facing a critical drop in combat effectiveness. Just ten days prior, the iconic moment of the American flag being raised by the 28th Marines atop Mount Suribachi had stirred the spirits of the troops, but now, on the harsh terrain of “Sulphur Island,” fatigue was setting in. The V Amphibious Corps had already suffered 13,000 casualties, including 3,000 fatalities, while the front lines remained precariously etched across Iwo’s northern region, entrenched in the heart of the Japanese defenses. As the battle raged on, the Japanese garrison, led by General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, was also feeling the strain. Although his 109th Division had inflicted significant losses on the Marines, their own casualties were mounting. The recent American capture of pivotal hills had stripped Kuribayashi of crucial artillery observation points, and with his trusted chief of artillery, Colonel Chosaku Kaido, gravely injured, the situation grew more desperate. Relocating his command post to a fortified cave on the northwest coast, Kuribayashi received radio messages from Imperial General Headquarters, but he was in no mood for empty promises. “Send me air and naval support and I will hold the island,” he signaled. “Without them, I cannot hold.” - Summary by Joseph H. Alexander