Ukraine and Poland complete exhumations in two former villages in Volyn – photo

Poland's Institute of National Remembrance has announced the completion of work to exhume victims of the Volyn tragedy in two former villages in Volyn.

Source: the Polish institute, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The work took place in the villages of Ostrivky and Volia Ostrovetska in Volyn. It involved staff from the Volyn Antiquities institution, employees of the Institute of National Remembrance of the Republic of Poland and experts from Wrocław Medical University.

The Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance, in turn, arranged for search experts and an anthropologist to oversee the work. The works were carried out by Dolia, a municipal company run by Lviv Oblast Council that locates burial sites of participants in national liberation movements, as well as victims of wars, deportations and political repression.

During the exhumation work, which lasted from 13 July to 7 August, experts found the remains of 55 victims, including 26 children. The burial sites were identified during a search expedition in April 2026.

In addition to human remains, researchers recovered more than 300 personal items that may help with the further identification of the victims and the study of the circumstances of the tragedy.

After the necessary procedures are completed, the remains will be reburied at the cemetery of the former village of Ostrivky.

The next exhumations are most likely to take place in Huta Pieniacka next year, where a burial site was discovered in June.

Last year, Ukraine resumed allowing search and exhumation work for Polish victims on its territory after a hiatus of several years. Since then, victims of the tragic events of the 20th century have been exhumed and reburied in Puzhnyky, as have Polish soldiers who died during the September 1939 campaign.

For reference: The Volyn (Volhynia) tragedy is a series of events that led to the ethnic cleansing of the Polish and Ukrainian populations in 1943. The tragedy was part of a long-standing rivalry between Ukrainians and Poles in what is now Ukraine's west.

Background:

• Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has welcomed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's decision on Ukrainian-Polish relations, including the opening of archives and search-and-exhumation work in Volyn.
• Polish Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz has said he hopes Volodymyr Zelenskyy's promises to open archives, enable further exhumations and engage in dialogue will translate into concrete action.

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