U.S. Marines land on the small (3km x 0.7km) but strategic and heavily defended atoll of Tarawa; the Japanese defended them for 72 hours, after which they took control of the important airstrip: it was the first step in the “small steps” strategy toward the invasion of Japan. To capture an area of half a square mile, 1,115 Americans died, along with all but 19 of the 4,601 Japanese who defended the island.
