By the middle of 1944 the two American thrusts across the Pacific were beginning to converge on Japan, whose main cities were now being continuously bombed. The immediate objective was the Marianas group of islands, including Saipan, Guam, and Tinian. The attack on Saipan was opened on June 15 by Lieutenant General Holland M. Smith's Fifth Amphibious Corps, made up of two Marine divisions and an Army division. After intense fighting, Smith completed capture of the island by July 9.