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When did major ground combat on Okinawa end?
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Battle of Okinawa
U.S. Marines battling for control of a ridge near Naha, Okinawa, May 1945.
Major ground combat on Okinawa lasted until June 21, 1945, as Japanese resistance in the southern half of the island was particularly bitter. Following the end of this combat, the Japanese commander, Lieutenant General Ushijima Mitsuru, committed suicide on June 22. The entire campaign for the island was officially declared ended on July 2, 1945.12