Japanese air attacks on the Mariana Islands and anti-aircraft guns shot down about 37 Japanese aircraft during these raids. After the Marianas began to come under attack, the United States military stepped up its raids on the Japanese-held islands which could be used to launch raids on the B-29 bases. Particular attention was given to Iwo Jima, as it was correctly assumed that the Japanese aircraft which attacked the Marianas were flying from Japan and staging through the island en route to their targets. Following the first raid against Saipan in November, XXI Bomber Command B-29s were dispatched against Iwo Jima's airfields on November 5 and 8.
Japanese settlement in the Marshall Islands to Jaluit. The civilian administration was established at Jabat Island and replaced the military administration in 1922. A small branch government office was established; and local Japanese settlers opened a small copra plantation on the island. In the early 1920s, a Japanese trader settled in Enewetak and made false claims that he had received permission from the government to develop coconut groves. The natives initially worked for the trader, but resisted after realising the trader's false claims. There was no permanent official at Enewetak and Ujelang, but a ship from Pohnpei would make occasional visits to the islands. Japanese traders