TOKYO — Heckled by local residents, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe joined about 5,000 people including the U.S. ambassador in a memorial service marking the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Okinawa, one of the bloodiest conflicts of World War II.
Resentment over the continuing presence of U.S. bases in Okinawa, a chain of islands at the southern tip of the Japanese archipelago, was evident during the ceremony held to remember more than 200,000 people, many of them civilians, who died in the fighting near the war’s end.
As Abe approached the podium, voices from the crowd could be heard shouting, “What are you doing here?” and “Go home!”
The main island of Okinawa is home to about half of the 50,000 American troops in Japan. Residents have frequently complained about crime, noise and other issues related to the U.S. bases.