Sunday marks 72 years since the Battle of Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest battles of World War II.
The struggle for the island began Feb. 19, 1945. The now-iconic flag raising on Mount Suribachi occurred on Feb. 23, but it took almost a month more of fighting before the U.S. claimed control of the entire island on March 26.
The battle of Iwo Jima started 72 years ago today.
Remember Iwo Jima with this rare footage. pic.twitter.com/uesvj6hExB
— U.S. Marines (@USMC) February 19, 2017
To commemorate the anniversary, the Marines posted some rare video footage of the attack.
When the battle was over, 6,800 Marines had been killed and an additional 18,000 had been wounded. About 18,000 Japanese were also killed.
More than one-quarter of the 82 Medals of Honor awarded during World War II were presented to Marines who had fought at Iwo Jima.
