The Japanese Invasion of Malaya

From YouTube. Special Thanks to zxwar.

WWII Short documentary: The Japanese Invasion of Malaya

The Japanese Invasion of Malaya began just after midnight on 8 December 1941 before the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Japanese plan for the invasion involved landing troops on the east coasts of Thailand and Malaya. The forces in Thailand were to push through to the west coast and invade Malaya from its northern province of Kedah, whilst their eastern forces from Vietnam would attack down the east coast and into the interior of Malaya from Kota Bharu.

The Japanese attack force for the invasion of Malaya, Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamashita's 25th Army, had sailed from Samah Harbour on Hainan Island on 4 December 1941.

Japanese troops launched an amphibious assault on the northern coast of Malaya at Kota Bharu and started advancing down the eastern coast of Malaya. This was made in conjunction with landings at Pattani and Songkhla in Thailand, where they then proceeded south overland across the Thailand-Malayan border to attack the western portion of Malaya.

The Japanese had already coerced the Thai government into letting them use Thai military bases to launch attacks into Malaya.

"Malaya or Peninsular Malaysia or West Malaysia (Malay: Semenanjung Malaysia) is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore. Its area is 50,810 square miles (131,598 square kilometers). It accounts for the majority of Malaysia's population and economy. Across the Strait of Malacca to the west lies the island of Sumatra. East Malaysia (on the island of Borneo) is to the east across the South China Sea."