Scientists will conduct identification of the victims by name based on genetic material taken from living relatives.
In the area of Uhly — Sarny district, Rivne region — in Ukraine, the search for the remains of the victims of the Volhynian tragedy begins. In May 1943, Ukrainian nationalists killed about 100 Poles there. The search operations are expected to allow for exhumations and ensure a dignified burial for the victims, reports polskieradio.pl.
A group led by Andrzej Ossowski from the Pomeranian Medical University will search for a grave in Uhly, where the bodies of the murdered Poles were buried more than 80 years ago. "We will try to find the grave of several dozen people who were killed and buried at the location indicated by witnesses," clarified Andrzej Ossowski.
Families of the victims will also be present at the site, including Karolina Romanowska — the head of the "Polish-Ukrainian Reconciliation" organization, which received permission to conduct the search operations. As Romanowska told Polish Radio, the families of the victims have been waiting for decades for a dignified and Christian burial for their murdered relatives.
The discovery of the burials will allow for exhumation work to begin soon and for the identification of the victims by name based on genetic material taken from living relatives.
At the end of 2025, the presidents of Ukraine and Poland — Volodymyr Zelensky and Karol Nawrocki — reached agreements to enhance search and exhumation efforts. A corresponding intergovernmental Polish-Ukrainian working group has been in operation for over a year. As a result of its activities, searches and exhumations were conducted in both Ukraine and Poland in 2025.
