Svetlahorsk Resident Finds Human Bones And Ammunition On Private Property
Reform.news Editorial Team · 6 November 2026, 10:59
https://reform.news/en/svetlahorsk-resident-finds-human-bones-and-ammunition-on-private-property/The remains of at least four people and ammunition dating back to World War II have been discovered on a private property in Svetlahorsk. The discovery was made in late August by a local resident carrying out excavation work to lay utility lines to a newly built house, the State Forensic Examination Committee reported.
During an inspection of the site, more than 200 fragments of human bones were recovered from the ground, along with fragments of leather items, metal spoons, mess tins, a PPSh submachine gun, nearly 100 rounds of ammunition and several grenades. The grenades were neutralised by a bomb disposal team that arrived from Babruysk.
A forensic examination established that the skeletal remains could have belonged to at least four people. Based on the condition of the bones, the expert determined that they had been in the ground for 80 years or more.
During World War II, the site of what is now a street was rural land on the outskirts of the village of Svietach, which was known as Kakal until 1964. German forces occupied the region in August 1941, and in the winter of 1943–1944 the area became a frontline zone. Raids and punitive operations were carried out there.
The village of Ola, where 1,758 people, including 950 children, were killed at once during one of the most brutal punitive operations, is located approximately 20 kilometres from the discovery site.
According to the Svetlahorsk District Investigative Committee, the skeletal remains found on the private property have been reburied in a mass grave in Svetlahorsk.
