Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City have recovered four more sets of soldiers' remains from a newly excavated mass grave trench at Le Thi Rieng Park, military officials said on July 24.
A new exploratory trench has been opened at Le Thi Rieng Park (Photo: Ngoc Tan).
The discovery came after search teams resumed excavation following a temporary suspension to expand the search area at the park.
Speaking to Dantri/Dtinews, Major General Nguyen Thanh Trung, political commissar of the Ho Chi Minh City High Command, said excavators had dug to a depth of four metres at a newly identified trench, where the remains of four soldiers were recovered.
Investigators also found several personal effects alongside the remains, including an intravenous drip tube, suggesting one of the dead may have been a wounded soldier, as well as rubber sandals and other personal belongings.
The newly excavated trench is located several dozen metres from the existing excavation site. Because the ground at the location is higher, crews had to dig deeper to reach the burial area.
The remains and artefacts were recovered on the morning of July 24 (Photo: Ngoc Tan).
At the original excavation site, search teams had previously recovered more than 100 sets of remains while extending the dig.
Further expansion of the original excavation was temporarily suspended after one side of the pit reached a nearby structure that must be relocated before work can continue.