Ho Chi Minh City (VNA) – The Ho Chi Minh City Steering Committee for the Search for, Collection and Identification of Martyrs' Remains (Steering Committee 515) is preparing to hold a memorial and burial ceremony in August for the remains of fallen soldiers recovered at Le Thi Rieng Park, once search and recovery operations are completed.
At a July 30 conference reviewing search, recovery and identification efforts in the first half of 2026, the committee outlined key priorities for the remainder of the year, including directing relevant agencies and local authorities to collect and verify information from the Vietnam War Missing in Action Initiative (VWAI), the Vietnam Centre and Sam Johnson Vietnam Archive at Texas Tech University, and foreign veterans.
The information, covering 12 battle sites across the city, will support field surveys and help formulate new search and recovery plans.
The committee will also strengthen logistical support for search, recovery and identification missions while expanding public awareness campaigns on the Party's and State's policies and the outcomes of the nationwide 500-day campaign.
Authorities aim to complete DNA sampling from unidentified graves at martyrs' cemeteries by the end of September before transferring the samples to the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology for analysis. Meanwhile, the municipal police will continue updating records and collecting DNA samples from relatives of unidentified fallen soldiers.
Colonel Nguyen Dinh Chuan, Deputy Political Commissar of the Ho Chi Minh City High Command, said search teams recovered the remains of 154 fallen soldiers at Le Thi Rieng Park between June 23 and July 30. The findings included 132 individual sets of remains, four mass graves containing 22 sets of remains, and a number of personal artefacts.
The second phase of excavations at Bong Trang Stream in Chanh Phu Hoa ward, however, has yet to uncover any additional remains.
Authorities are also carrying out exploratory excavations at two of 12 planned sites identified through verified information sources. The locations include the former K76A and K76B hospitals in Hoa Hiep commune and the So Hoi area in Binh Co ward, both in the former Binh Duong province.
As of July 29, DNA sample collection from unidentified graves had been completed at 10 of the city's 18 martyrs' cemeteries, with work now continuing at five others.
A total of 7,640 samples have been collected from 9,885 graves, equivalent to 77.2% of the target. Of these, 5,591 graves were eligible for sampling, while 2,049 were unsuitable, including 305 that contained no remains./.
