American troops from the U.S. 77th Infantry Division landed 1945 on Ie Shima (or Ie Jima) as part of the battle of Okinawa and there was heavy fighting from April 16 until the island was secured on April 21. U.S. journalist Ernie Pyle was killed during the battle. The U.S. 77th Infantry Division was inactivated on 15 March 1946 in Japan. The battle has been referred to as the «typhoon of steel» in English and «tetsu no ame» (rain of steel) or «tetsu no bōfū» (violent wind of steel) in Japanese. The nicknames refer to the ferocity of the fighting, the intensity of Japanese kamikaze attacks and the sheer numbers of Allied ships and armored vehicles that assaulted the island. The battle was one of the bloodiest in the Pacific.

Well worn Zippo with original engraved U.S. Infantry insignia and hand engraved geisha face, Mount Gusuku (or Tatchuu in Kunigami) as most notable geographical peak (172 meters), the year «1945» with the island name «Ie Shima» on one side and the year «1946» with the island name «Okinawa» on the other side.