Kerama Retto
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Kerama Retto (慶良間諸島 Kerama Shotō?) [1] consists of six inhabited and some twenty uninhabited islands grouped near one another and located about 30 kilometers west of Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan.
During World War II and preliminary to the Battle of Okinawa, soldiers of the 77th Infantry Division landed in the Kerama Retto March 26, 1945. Subsidiary landings followed, and the Kerama group was secured over the next five days. Kerama Retto was used as a staging area for the assault on Okinawa. During the battle the first civilian mass suicides that later marked the Battle of Okinawa took place.
It was the site of a true story about romance between two dogs who lived on neighboring islands that was made into the 1988 Japanese film I Want to See Marilyn[2]. It is now a popular beach and diving destination for visitors to Okinawa.
The islands include:
- Tokashikijima
- Zamamijima
- Akajima
- Gerumajima
The islands are within Shimajiri District.[1]
Kerama Airport serves the island chain.
