A grim task right enough. "On a remote coral island in the tiny Pacific nation of Palau, officials have been inching through foliage littered with explosives to open up a network of sealed caves and search for thousands of bodies believed to have lain inside since theSecond World War. The grim and painstaking task, undertaken by a team of local and Japanese archaeologists and munitions experts, is aimed at finding the remains of Japanese soldiers trapped inside by United States forces during one of the toughest battles of the war. The Japanese used the caves, connected via tunnels and narrow passageways, as a base for their defence of Peleliu, a narrow island only six miles long. More than 10,000 Japanese soldiers died, but the bodies of 2,600 were never found. Now, Palau has agreed to open about 200 remaining sealed caves to try to locate the remains ahead of a visit early next month by Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. The macabre task is risky and involves clearing a way into the caves through thick forest littered with unexploded ordnance. A team of experts took five days last week to clear their way into just one small cave with a 7ft opening. Archaeologists found a set of bones which are believed to be human and will be taken back to Japan for testing. "They found some bones while they were clearing the entrance of the cave," Bernadette Carreon, a local journalist, told ABC Radio. "They did not use heavy equipment because they have to make it clear of heavy ordnance. When it's clear, the archaeologists can go in and start bone collection."" http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/palau/11501770/Japan-searches-for-Second-World-War-soldiers-remains-in-sealed-caves-of-Palau.html
