Search for victims killed in 1943 in Ostrivky, Volyn region, begins and will last until May 1

Search research to identify the remains of residents of the former villages of Ostrivky and Volia Ostrovetska in the Volyn region, who tragically died in August 1943, began on Monday as part of the continuation of the Ukrainian-Polish dialogue, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine reported on its website Monday.

"The work will last until May 1, 2026. The purpose of the expedition is to localize the burial site. If burials are found during the process, it will serve as a basis for the next stages of work: exhumation, identification of remains, and their dignified reburial," the report says.

The sites of the liquidated villages of Ostrivky and Volia Ostrovetska are currently within the Rivne rural territorial community of the Kovel district, Volyn region.

Permission for the Polish side to conduct search operations in 2025 was granted by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine to the Volyn Antiquities Specialized Institution LLC. Polish specialists—employees of the Institute of National Remembrance of the Republic of Poland and the Wroclaw Medical University—will also participate in the expedition.

It is reported that the search operations will take place according to agreements reached through the activities of the Ukrainian-Polish Working Group on National Memory and following agreements between the presidents of both countries. In 2026, such work is planned for both Ukrainian and Polish territory, as noted in a relevant Communiqué from the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland.

The work will be accompanied by appropriate security measures and professional supervision by Ukrainian scientists.

"The tragic pages of the shared 20th-century history of both nations remains sensitive for Poles and Ukrainians. At the same time, consistent and responsible dialogue on these issues is a guarantee of dignified commemoration of the victims," Deputy Minister of Culture of Ukraine Ivan Verbytskyi noted.

Ostrivky and Volia Ostrovetska came under armed attack on the night of August 28-29, 1943 (according to other data, August 30). According to archival sources, the vast majority of the residents of the villages tragically died, and the villages themselves were burned.