Mass grave of 150 skeletons discovered in central Vietnam

A man in the central province of Quang Binh recently unearthed a mass grave under his house.

Duong Van Phong, who lives in Quang Tho Ward, told local authorities he had found over 150 sets of skeletons buried around his house.

The skeletons, all of which were severely decayed, have been sent for DNA testing.

However, the forensic biology testing center at the Ministry of Public Security's Criminal Science Institute said the bone samples dated back more than 150 years so there were only a limited number of tests they could run.

The skeletons were found in fractional state. Photo by XT.

Le Dinh Luong, chairman of Quang Tho People's Committee, ruled out the idea that the skeletons were remains of war's martyrs, saying that the location where they were found wasn't a former battlefield.

However, some elders in the neighboring ward of Quang Thuan said the land was probably a mass grave where anti-French insurgents were buried during the 19th century when France occupied Vietnam.

The remains have since been buried at a cemetery in Quang Thuan Ward.