Liberation of Manila, With Casualties

For John, BLUF:  War in built up areas is particularly ugly.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Manila Massacred: Remembering One of the Pacific War’s Nastiest Battles

This is, in essence, a review of a new book, Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila, by Mr James M. Scott.

From Task and Purpose, by Mr James M Scott, 21 November 2018.

Here is the lede plus one:

American General Douglas MacArthur, driven from the Philippines at the start of World War II, famously vowed to return. Few people recall the tragedy of his homecoming.

The 29-day battle to liberate Manila in February 1945 proved a fight unlike any other in the Pacific War, a bloody urban brawl that forced American soldiers to battle block by block, house by house and even room by room.  The end result was the catastrophic destruction of the Philippine capital—613 city blocks flattened, 200,000 civilians left homeless, and another 100,000 killed, many raped and murdered by the Japanese in atrocities that mirrored the Rape of Nanking.

The battle was very ugly and little noted.  And still, at the time, The Philippines was a Commonwealth under the United States.  Our responsibility to liberate Manila, and the rest of the Commonwealth.

Regards  —  Cliff