Japan's Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako on Monday paid their respects to the war dead on Iwoto Island in the Pacific, the site of a fierce World War II battle between the United States and Japan, in the first of a series of visits to commemorate 80 years since the end of the war.It marked their first journey to the island, formerly known as Iwojima, located some 1,250 kilometers south of Tokyo. The Battle of Iwojima lasted about a month after U.S. forces landed in February 1945, with an estimated 21,900 Japanese and 7,000 U.S. soldiers killed.Dressed in black, the imperial couple visite…READ FULL ARTICLE
