Aging U.S. veterans return to Iwo Jima
IOTO, Japan – More than 30 veterans flown in from the U.S. island territory of Guam toured the black-sand beaches of Iwo Jima on Saturday to mark the 70th anniversary of one of the bloodiest and most iconic battles of World War II, where they invaded the deeply dug-in forces of the island’s Japanese defenders.
They were bused to the top of Mount Suribachi, an active volcano, where an Associated Press photo of the raising of the American flag while the battle was still raging became a potent symbol of hope and valor to a war-weary public back home that was growing increasingly disillusioned with the seemingly unending battle in the Pacific.
For some of the veterans, the return to the island – where many of their comrades died and which still is inhabited only by a contingent of Japanese military troops – brought out difficult emotions.
“I hated them,” said former Sgt. John Roy Coltrane, 93, of Siler City, North Carolina. “For 40 years, I wouldn’t even buy anything made in Japan. But now, I drive a Honda.”
Shiite rebels call for an all-out offensive
ADEN, Yemen – Yemen’s Shiite rebels issued a call to arms Saturday to battle forces loyal to the country’s embattled president, as U.S. troops were evacuating a southern air base crucial to America’s drone strike program after al-Qaida militants seized a nearby city.
The turmoil comes as Yemen battles al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula – the target of the drone program – and faces a purported affiliate of the Islamic State group.
Associated Press
