古德明英语军事小故事：冲绳岛之役(中英对照)

古德明《征服英语》之英语军事故事，古德明，香港英语教育作家，他开了一个《征服英语专栏》，在专栏中专门用英语写了世界近代史上的军事小故事，用英语讲述历史中那些惊心动魄的战争。

冲绳岛之役

On 1 April 1945, US troops landed, almost unopposed, on Okinawa. But as they pushed into the interior, they ran up against bitter resistance. The Japanese had dug themselves into a warren-like complex* of passageways, tunnels, and command posts. For 12 long weeks, every position was fiercely contested before US forces finally broke Japanese resistance. Roughly a third of the infantrymen and marines deployed by the US armed forces were killed.

When the defenders saw that Okinawa was lost, their commander, General Mitsaru Ushijima, and his officers committed suicide. The Japanese military also persuaded Okinawan civilians that they had no future under US occupation. Influenced by such propaganda, whole classes of schoolchildren and their teachers leaped to their deaths off the island's high cliffs.

一九四五年四月一日,美军登陆冲绳岛,几乎没有遇到抵抗,但一向内陆进兵,就遇上顽强抗击。日军挖了兔窟般纵横交错的通路、隧道、指挥站等,处处死守,过了整整十二个星期,才被打垮。美军出动的步兵和海军陆战队员,约有三分之一战死。

日本守军眼看冲绳不保,指挥官牛岛满将军和手下军官自杀殉职。日本军方还向冲绳百姓力言,在美军占领之下,他们不会有前途。一班班的学生和他们的教师,受了这类宣传熏陶,纷纷走到冲绳岛峭拔的悬崖上,跃下身亡。

附注：

* Warren也作 rabbit warren,指野兔群居、洞穴错综复杂的地区,常用于比喻。

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