The Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) announced on Monday the start of exhumation work in the areas of the former villages of Ostrówki and Wola Ostrowiecka, located in the former Luboml County in Volhynia. The works, during which the remains of Poles murdered in 1943 will be recovered, will continue until August 7.
The former villages of Ostrówki and Wola Ostrowiecka are currently located in the rural Riwne municipality, in the Kovel District of the Volyn Region.
“After obtaining the required permits from the Ukrainian side, specialists from the Institute of National Remembrance – in cooperation with Dr. Łukasz Szleszkowski from the Wrocław Medical University and the company Volhynian Antiquities, as well as with the participation of representatives of the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage – are beginning exhumation work,” IPN stated in a statement.
The Institute added that the remains of Poles murdered by Ukrainian nationalists in August 1943 will be recovered during the works. “These activities are a direct continuation of the search operations carried out in April this year, during which previously unknown burial sites were located,” IPN recalled.
IPN explained that the current phase of the work will focus on three locations where the remains of victims were discovered in April.
“The first is a mass grave in Wola Ostrowiecka, located on the site of the former farm belonging to Aleksander Strażec, where earlier exploratory research revealed the outlines of a burial pit, confirming the mass nature of the burial. Further work will cover a mass grave near the foundations of the former school in Ostrówki, as well as an individual grave located opposite the local cemetery,” the Institute reported.
IPN emphasized that the current stage of the project is part of many years of research conducted in Ostrówki and Wola Ostrowiecka. In 1992, 2011, and 2015, the remains of 674 people were discovered, exhumed, and given a dignified burial there.
“The exhumation work will continue until August 7 this year. The Institute of National Remembrance will provide ongoing updates on the progress of the research through its information channels,” the statement read.