Japan invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II from 1941-1945. They established a puppet government called the Second Republic led by President Jose P. Laurel. The Huks, a guerilla group led by Luis Taruc and Juan Feleo, resisted Japanese occupation. General Douglas MacArthur returned to the Philippines in 1944 and began liberating the country from Japanese forces, declaring full liberation on July 4, 1945 after intense fighting.