The Da Nang Military Command said on Sept. 15 that it had completed the exhumation and collection of biological samples for DNA testing from nearly 26,000 graves of fallen soldiers whose identities remain unknown.

Da Nang has the largest number of war graves requiring biological sampling in the country, accounting for more than half of all graves requiring samples within Vietnam’s Military Region 5.

Faced with the exceptionally large workload and the approaching rainy season, Da Nang shifted from carrying out the work sequentially to conducting operations simultaneously at cemeteries where conditions allowed.

Personnel and equipment were mobilized for continuous operations, while difficulties arising at individual locations were addressed as they emerged.

The approach allowed work originally expected to take several months to be completed before the rainy season.

Completing the collection of biological samples provides a foundation for accelerating DNA analysis and data matching to establish the identities of fallen soldiers whose information remains unknown, helping efforts to locate their relatives and families.

Alongside the DNA identification effort, the search for and recovery of soldiers’ remains continues across Da Nang.

To date, the city has located and recovered the remains of 61 fallen soldiers, while authorities continue reviewing and verifying information and expanding search areas.

Ha Nam