Volhynia exhumations uncover 1943 Polish massacre victims

Archaeologists are exhuming the remains of Polish civilians killed on 30 August 1943 by OUN‑UPA units in the former villages of Ostrówki and Wola Ostrowiecka in Ukraine’s Volhynia region. The work, begun on 14 July after Ukrainian authorities granted permission, is carried out by specialists from the Institute of National Remembrance’s Search and Identification Office, the Ukrainian archaeological firm Wołyńskie Starożytności, the Medical University of Wrocław and representatives of the Polish Ministry of Culture and Heritage, with Ukrainian sappers and local police securing the sites.

In the first phase, 49 victims were identified; on the same day at least five additional remains were disclosed. Each discovery is documented and examined by archaeologists, anthropologists and forensic doctors. Fr. Tomasz Trzaska of the IPN praised the cooperation with Ukrainian colleagues as exemplary, stressing that every victim has the right to a name, prayer and a dignified grave and that the Polish state cannot consider the matter resolved by isolated agreements. He also warned against hateful comments directed at Ukrainians living in Poland.