On September 10, at Ben Luc Martyrs' Cemetery, Tay Ninh province, the Steering Committee for searching, repatriating and identifying martyrs' remains of Tay Ninh province organized a transportation and handover ceremony for the 2nd phase with 5,287 biological samples of martyrs' remains to Division 370 (Air Defense - Air Force Service), to be taken to Hanoi for DNA testing.
Among these, 4,949 samples were collected from unidentified martyrs' graves at martyrs' cemeteries in the province; the remaining 338 samples were collected from martyrs' remains collected by Team K in phase 2, phase XXV (dry season 2025 - 2026) in Cambodia.
This is the 2nd handover. Previously, at the beginning of August 2026, Tay Ninh transferred 10,387 biological samples to the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology for DNA testing.
The above figures are the result of a large-scale process. From June 4 to August 21, 2026, Tay Ninh province organized excavations of 18,593 graves of unidentified martyrs at 18 cemeteries. As a result, 15,336 graves are eligible for biological sample collection for DNA testing.
After the handover ceremony, the samples are stored at the storage warehouse of Division 370 before being transported by military aircraft from Tan Son Nhat airport to Gia Lam airport (Hanoi) on September 11. In Hanoi, the samples will be transferred to specialized agencies to carry out DNA testing procedures.
Colonel Nguyen Minh Tan, Deputy Political Commissar of the Provincial Military Command, Deputy Head of the Steering Committee, emphasized that each biological sample transferred carries the hope of finding the names and hometowns of the martyrs. The assessment results are expected to open up the opportunity to identify thousands of martyrs with unclear information, bringing them back to their families and homeland.
That is not only professional work, but also a journey to implement the morality of "When drinking water, remember the source", repaying the sacrifices of those who fell for the independence and freedom of the Fatherland.
