Until a few weeks ago, I don't think I'd ever heard of the battle that took place here. However, it was one of the battles the destroyer USS Russell (DD-414) took part in and there was an article in a recent World War II magazine on it.
It was part of the Western New Guinea Campaign.
From the December 2, 2021, New York Times " 'Call Me Dog Tag Man': Pacific island is full of relics and human remains" by Dera Menra Sijabat and Richard C. Paddock.'
On a remote coral island in Indonesia, a history lover who keeps a collection of old bombs in his living room scours the jungle for war relics -- and sometimes finds human bones, too.
"People call me Dog Tag Man," said Alberth Wakum, who hopes one day to open a museum showcasing his discoveries. "I preserve evidence of history and keep it from perishing."
The island of Biak, where Mr. Wakum, 58, has spent nearly his entire life, was the scene of a fierce battle in World War II as General MacArthur campaigned to wrest the western Pacific from Japanese forces. There were thousands of casualties on both sides.
The remains of about 150 American soldiers who died there have never been found. They are among the 1,900 American service members believed to have been killed in Indonesia over the course of the war whose remains have never been found.
--GreGen
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