Day 899 February 15, 1942

Singapore. Churchill gives General Wavell “discretion to cease resistance”, which Wavell passes on to Malaya commander General Percival. At 9.30 AM, Percival meets with senior military and civilian leaders. Low on ammunition, with dead and wounded piling up and no fresh water supply, they agree that further resistance is futile. Percival dispatches a delegation at 11.30 AM with a white flag and a Union Jack, following Japanese instructions, but they are sent back by the Japanese who want Percival to surrender in person. At 5.15 PM, Percival returns with the white flag and Union Jack to meet General Yamashita in the Ford Motor Factory at Bukit Timah. After 50 minutes of one-sided negotiations, Percival agrees to an 8.30 PM ceasefire and surrender. Japanese have 5092 casualties (1714 killed) but capture 500 mortars, artillery, anti-tank and anti-aircraft guns. 65,000 Indian, 35,000 British, 15,000 Australian and 15,000 Malay troops go into captivity, where many will die. Numerous Allied troops escape overnight on small boats including Australian General Gordon Bennett who will be reprimanded for not seeking permission from Percival, his superior officer. To impose order on the island, Japanese will slaughter 5000 Chinese civilians as an example.

Sumatra, Dutch East Indies. British tug HMS Yin Ping is sunk by Japanese naval gunfire in Bangka Straits (50 killed, 25 survivors). Japanese aircraft from Malaya and the carrier Ryūjō attack the ABDA fleet of 5 cruisers and 11 destroyers forcing them to return to Batavia, Java. Dutch destroyer HNMS Van Ghent runs aground on the Bamidjo reef off Billiton Island and is abandoned (all hands taken off by destroyer HNMS Banckert). The departure of the ABDA warships allows the Japanese amphibious landings to go ahead entering the mouth of the Musi River (40 miles North of Palembang). RAF send 22 Hurricanes, 35 Blenheims and 3 Hudsons to attack the landing craft, sinking 20 (100 Japanese killed). Another 100 Japanese paratroopers reinforce yesterday’s landing and prevent destruction of the oil refinery at Palembang by retreating Allied soldiers. British troop transport ship, the liner Ocrades, arrives at Oosthaven on Sumatra carrying Australian 3,400 troops but is sent on to Java without disembarking the troops

Burma. Japanese attack Indian 17th Infantry Division defenses on the Bilin River and immediately begin infiltrating across the narrow waterway.

Japanese submarine I-165 sinks Danish SS Johanne Justesen off the Southern tip of India (1 killed).

U-432 and U-566 each sink 1 merchant ship off the East coast of USA.