HCM City holds memorial service for 731 sets of fallen soldiers’ remains

The event was jointly organised by the municipal Party Committee, People’s Council, People’s Committee and Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, together with the Party Committee and High Command of Military Region 7.

Prime Minister Le Minh Hung attended the ceremony alongside other incumbent and former Party and State leaders.

The ceremony carries profound political, historical and humanitarian significance, expressing the gratitude of the Party, State, armed forces and people to those who sacrificed their lives for national liberation and reunification. Following the memorial service and funeral rite at the park, the remains were to be transferred to Ho Chi Minh City Martyrs’ Cemetery for burial.

The recovered remains comprise 698 individual sets and a collective grave containing 33 sets of remains. According to authorities, the martyrs died during the 1968 General Offensive and Uprising.

The ceremony marks an important milestone after more than three months of searching and recovery work at Le Thi Rieng Park. The operation involved painstaking efforts to gather and cross-check historical records, verify information from witnesses and survey the site in a bid to recover traces of those who had been buried there decades earlier.

Continuing the search and identification effort

Bringing the 731 sets of remains to their final resting place marks a significant step in the recovery process, but efforts to establish the identities of the fallen soldiers must continue. Behind every set of remains is a life cut short, a family and loved ones who may still be waiting for news of those who never returned.

This work is also a key objective of the 500-day campaign to intensify the search for, recovery and identification of martyrs’ remains. As of October 13, 2026, the campaign had recovered 3,611 sets of remains, equivalent to 51.59% of its target. Of these, 2,374 were recovered in Vietnam, 217 in Laos and 1,020 in Cambodia.

Alongside search and recovery operations, the collection of biological samples, DNA testing, data completion and cross-referencing remain crucial to identifying the fallen. The process requires close coordination among relevant authorities, localities and martyrs’ relatives, as well as sustained efforts to overcome challenges caused by the passage of time, the condition of the remains and gaps in historical records.

The memorial service, funeral rite and burial ceremony for the 731 martyrs in Ho Chi Minh City are therefore more than an act of remembrance. They also underscore the continuing responsibility to search for those who have yet to be identified. Every set of remains recovered and every identity established brings the fallen one step closer to their families, hometowns and the nation’s collective memory.

The 500-day campaign turns gratitude into concrete action by continuing the search, completing records, identifying the fallen and giving their families a chance to find their loved ones. It is also a way to uphold Vietnam’s tradition of honouring those who came before, ensuring that the sacrifices of previous generations are remembered and cherished.

30 fallen soldiers recovered from Quang Tri Citadel laid to rest at cemetery

VOV.VN - The remains of 30 Vietnamese fallen soldiers recovered from the Quang Tri Citadel and surrounding areas were laid to rest at Quang Tri Martyrs’ Cemetery on September 30, more than half a century after they fell on the battlefield.