Iwo Jima, a military base, is open to outsiders for only one day each year, and then only to US veterans, their families, and a very few journalists travelling with them. Seventy years on from the terrible battle that was fought here, 26 veterans have come back. The youngest is in his late eighties. Most are in their early nineties. For most this is the first time they have seen the island since 1945. The excitement and emotion is palpable.... An hour later as I reach the top one of the old men is playing The Halls of Montezuma on a harmonica. Behind him two more are once again raising the Stars and Stripes over the mountain. Standing nearby is Hershel "Woody" Williams. Hanging around his neck is the Medal of Honor, America's highest award for bravery. On the day they raised the flag here, Woody was far below assaulting Japanese bunkers with a flamethrower. It was perhaps the most dangerous job in the Marine Corps. "I am thinking of those who didn't make it home," he tells me. "I am thinking of the heroes who died here. I lost three of my closest friends here. I am not a hero, they are.".. All but one of the veterans on Mount Suribachi today is American. The exception is a small Japanese gentleman in suit and tie standing slightly apart. For 88-year-old Tsuruji Akikusa there is nothing to celebrate. Looking down from the mountain he too is filled with memories, awful ones. As he turns to me, tears well up in his eyes."