Eight martyrs killed during the July–August movement and buried as unclaimed have been identified through DNA testing, Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said on Thursday.
Speaking at a press briefing at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital, Alam said the identities of eight individuals had been confirmed from among 118 bodies exhumed from Rayerbazar graveyard.
“Many people were buried at Rayerbazar graveyard. Among the bodies exhumed from there, eight have been successfully identified, and their families have already been informed,” he said, adding that the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs would publish detailed information on the matter soon.
Alam said the complex process of identifying the martyrs is being carried out in line with international standards. He said an international expert team that worked on identifying victims of the Srebrenica massacre during the Bosnian War provided training to relevant professionals in Bangladesh.
He added that several local experts have also been trained to accurately identify individuals through DNA sampling.
According to Alam, the same meticulous methods used after the Srebrenica tragedy are being applied in Bangladesh. Although the process is extremely time-consuming and challenging, he said the government remains fully committed to confirming the identity of every martyr.
Hundreds of people were killed during the July–August movement, and many were buried as unclaimed as they could not be identified at the time. After assuming office, the interim government initiated the exhumation of bodies and DNA testing to establish their identities.