Yoshimitsu Zukeyama was just 16 years old when he was forced into the Imperial Japanese Army during the final months of World War II.
Today, at 96, the native of the village of Ogimi in northern Okinawa still carries the scars of war — both physical and psychological — and spends his days sharing his story with younger generations in hopes they never experience the same.
“There’s nothing more foolish than war,” Zukeyama said in a recent interview in Ogimi.
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