<Li> Action of 24 July 1945 </Li> <P> The Battle of Leyte Gulf (Filipino: Labanan sa Golpo ng Leyte) is generally considered to have been the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history . </P> <P> It was fought in waters near the Philippine islands of Leyte, Samar and Luzon, from 23--26 October 1944, between combined American and Australian forces and the Imperial Japanese Navy . On 20 October, United States troops invaded the island of Leyte as part of a strategy aimed at isolating Japan from the countries it had occupied in Southeast Asia, and in particular depriving Japanese forces and industry of vital oil supplies . The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) mobilized nearly all of its remaining major naval vessels in an attempt to defeat the Allied invasion but was repulsed by the U.S. Navy's Third and Seventh fleets . The IJN failed to achieve its objective, suffered heavy losses, and never sailed to battle in comparable force thereafter . The majority of its surviving heavy ships, deprived of fuel, remained in their bases for the rest of the Pacific War and suffered under heavy sustained aerial attack . </P> <P> The battle consisted of several separate engagements between the opposing forces: the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, the Battle of Surigao Strait, the Battle of Cape Engaño and the Battle off Samar, as well as other actions . </P>

What happened at the end of leyte gulf
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