No Mass Graves Found in Puzhnyky Search

Ukrainian and Polish specialists have finished the current stage of their search for victims of World War II in the former village of Puzhnyky, located in Ternopil Oblast. The team did not uncover any mass graves during this specific operation. Instead, investigators identified structural remains that suggest the location of a local cemetery. The discovery provides a new point of reference for future digging efforts in the area.

Volyn Antiquities, the Ukrainian institution leading the excavation, reported finding the foundation of a chapel. The organization stated that the building likely served as a place where funeral services were held before residents were interred. Workers also uncovered an outbuilding and stone masonry that may be part of an old road. These physical artifacts help map the layout of the community as it existed prior to the conflict.

The search team includes experts from Volyn Antiquities on the Ukrainian side. The Polish delegation is composed of researchers from the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin and representatives of the Freedom and Democracy Foundation. Both groups worked together to examine the soil and structural remains at the site. Their joint effort aims to locate the remains of villagers killed during the war.

The village of Puzhnyky was home to a concentrated community of ethnic Poles between the two world wars. In February 1945, the settlement came under armed attack. Archival records indicate that some villagers were killed during the assault and the village was burned down. The Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance announced the start of these latest search operations on November 4. This phase follows previous work that began in the spring of 2025.

In a separate effort, a Ukrainian expedition completed search operations in the village of Łasków in Poland's Lublin Voivodeship in late October 2026. Early estimates from that site indicated the recovery of the remains of more than 40 people. The team is now turning its attention to further analysis of the Puzhnyky site. A permit for a LiDAR survey is currently being processed. This scanning method will help identify potential burial locations without extensive manual digging.