Poland to exhume Smolensk bodies

The remains of all the victims – with the exception of those which were already examined during the original investigation – will be exhumed, says RMF FM.

The decision was taken by a special team of investigators from the National Prosecutor's Office, headed by deputy Attorney General Marek Pasionek, the broadcaster said.

RMF FM quotes Ewa Bialik, a spokeswoman for the National Prosecutor, whe says that “contacts were established with well-known research centres in Europe to carry out additional studies and to provide their expertise.”

The Polish prosecutor in June had told the relatives of the victims of the Smolensk plane crash that all the bodies which were not cremated will be exhumed for testing.

“Comprehensive post-mortem examinations, also using computer tomography in the field of toxicology and DNA will be important for determining the injuries of the victims and the causes of their deaths, as well as to reconstruct the final moments of the disaster and its causes. It is vital to clarify the underlying thread of the investigation, despite several years having passed since the disaster,” the national prosecutor said.

The PiS party has vowed to bring several people involved in the organisation of the flight to justice, as well as to get to the bottom of why the president's Tupolev plane crashed while approaching the runway of Smolensk airport. (rg)

Source: RMF FM, Newsweek