The Ministry of National Defense announced that a joint enshrinement ceremony for 141 remains of Korean War soldiers discovered this year was held at the Seoul National Cemetery on the morning of the 15th, presided over by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok. The ceremony was attended by key figures including the Prime Minister, the Minister of National Defense, and the Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, as well as soldiers who participated in the excavation.
The joint enshrinement ceremony temporarily enshrines remains whose identities have not yet been confirmed until their families are found. Of the 141 remains discovered this year, none have been identified yet. The Korean War remains excavation project began in 2000, and to date, over 11,000 remains have been recovered, with 268 identified and returned to their families.
This year’s excavation took place from March to the end of November in 34 areas, including Cheorwon and Inje in Gangwon Province, Paju, Pocheon, and Yeoncheon in Gyeonggi Province, and Chilgok and Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province. Despite difficult conditions, the Ministry of National Defense’s excavation team and soldiers from 30 divisions and brigades recovered 141 remains. Additionally, the excavation of Baekma Hill in the DMZ, which was suspended in 2022, was resumed, recovering 25 remains.
After the joint enshrinement ceremony, the unidentified remains of 141 soldiers will be placed in the Ministry of National Defense’s remains storage facility and will undergo identification procedures, including DNA analysis, to be returned to their families. The Ministry of National Defense plans to strengthen the civil-military cooperation system and encourage family participation in DNA sampling to increase the identification rate of the remains.