New Exhumations in Volhynia: Nearly 700 Polish Victims Recovered to Date
Polish and Ukrainian experts have launched new exhumation efforts in the former villages of Ostr贸wki and Wola Ostrowiecka to recover the remains of victims from the 1943 Volhynia massacre. Ongoing...
Polish and Ukrainian experts have launched new exhumation efforts in the former villages of Ostr贸wki and Wola Ostrowiecka to recover the remains of victims from the 1943 Volhynia massacre.
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Ongoing Exhumation Efforts
The former villages of Ostr贸wki and Wola Ostrowiecka are currently located in the Rivne rural municipality of the Kovel district, Volhynian region. Excavation work is being carried out by the limited liability company “Volyn Antiquities,” with the participation of Polish specialists from the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and the Wroclaw Medical University.
The Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance (UIPN) is providing supervisory and consultative support through the “Dolia” municipal enterprise of the Lviv Regional Council. These investigations are proceeding under agreements reached by the Ukrainian-Polish Working Group on National Remembrance. Previous archaeological stages in these locations have already resulted in the recovery of 674 sets of remains of Poles murdered by OUN-UPA units on August 30, 1943.
Diplomatic Tensions Over Historical Memory
Relations between Poland and Ukraine have been strained recently due to disputes over historical remembrance, particularly regarding the commemoration of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). Tensions escalated following President Volodymyr Zelenskyy鈥檚 decision to name a Ukrainian military unit after UPA heroes, prompting strong criticism from Polish leadership, including Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Defense Minister W艂adys艂aw Kosiniak-Kamysz.
The diplomatic friction led to a series of order returns. Karol Nawrocki, president of the IPN, moved to strip Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle, which was subsequently returned to Warsaw. Former Ukrainian presidents and several officials also returned Polish state decorations, while prominent Polish politicians announced the return of Ukrainian honors. Despite this, Nawrocki met with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara to discuss security threats, though historical issues remain unresolved.
Legacy of the Volhynia Massacre
July 11 marks the National Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Genocide committed by Ukrainian nationalists against citizens of the Second Polish Republic. This date commemorates the peak of the Volhynia massacre, initiated by a wave of coordinated attacks on approximately 150 villages in July 1943.
Researchers estimate that between February 1943 and the spring of 1945, over 100,000 Poles were killed in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia by members of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and the UPA. Defense Minister W艂adys艂aw Kosiniak-Kamysz confirmed plans to visit the region to pay tribute to the victims, emphasizing the need for memory and truth over vengeance.