Biak had great strategic significance during World War II, when the Japanese occupied the island. Six kilometers east of Biak Town is Gua Jepang (Japanese Cave), is the local name for a cave which used to be used as a defense fortress by Japanese soldiers. The Japanese discovered the three-kilometer-long cave in 1943. Its gate is located in Paray beach in Paray village, Biak city. Japanese soldiers entered the cave from Paray beach.

The soldiers occupied three large rooms built inside the cave. The Japanese soldiers managed to shoot down a U.S. plane from their hiding place. However, eventually the US army came to know where the Japanese soldiers were hiding. So in the early morning of July 7, 1944, troops of General McArthur's forces attacked the cave. The cave was bombarded. The Americans also dropped drums of gasoline into the hideout and blasted them from the air, setting the cave into fire. The cave burned for several months. Some 3,000 Japanese soldiers were trapped and killed in the attack.

Located in a forest, the cave is one of Biak main tourist attractions. The forest is kept intact; tree cutting is strictly forbidden to keep the historic site as it is. The Japanese War memorial is a couple kilometers away from the caves at the seafront, consist a large concrete bowl with lot of memorial plaques and picnic tables alongside a beautiful palm-lined stretch of sand.

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