As a result of exhumation works conducted by the Institute of National Remembrance in Lviv-Zboiska, the remains of at least 31 people were found.
The exhumation works pertaining to the remains of Polish Army soldiers who fell in September 1939 defending the then Polish Lviv, conducted between 4-30 August 2025, were a continuation of the search works conducted by the IPN's Office of Search and Identification in the autumn of 2019 at the cemetery in Lviv-Zboiska. At that time, despite locating the burial site and meeting all formal requirements, permission for the exhumation was not granted. It became possible as a result of dialogue conducted in recent months between the Ministries of Culture of Poland and Ukraine, and the participation of the Working Group for Historical Dialogue. After five years of efforts, the permission was finally obtained. The Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and Information Policy notified the Polish side of this fact on 11 June 2025.
During the exhumation works, two mass graves, containing the remains of 31 people were discovered. Numerous other remains, most likely belonging to several dozen additional victims, were also found. This lack of certainty as to the number of victims is due to the partial destruction of the original grave during further burials. It may also be attributed to the circumstances of death of the soldiers who died on the battlefield after heavy artillery fire, which may have caused extensive bodily injuries. The final number of victims whose remains were exhumed is hoped to be determined through further anthropological and genetic research.
Numerous items of military equipment and uniforms (including military buttons, belts, and gas masks), as well as personal effects (medallions, rosaries, and Polish coins) were found beside the remains. Eleven dog tags containing data allowing for the identification of the soldiers are a particularly valuable find. Genealogical research and the collection of comparative material for genetic testing from relatives of the fallen soldiers are underway.
The works in Lviv-Zboiska were conducted by an interdisciplinary team from the IPN's Office of Search and Identification, with the participation of forensic expert Dr. Łukasz Szleszkowski from the Medical University in Wrocław. The Polish team's activities were conducted in close cooperation with the Institute's Ukrainian partner, the “Ukrainian Memory” Society. Representatives of the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage were present on-site as observers throughout the works.
The exhumation works were carried out with the support of the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Lviv, in cooperation with the Lviv local government and the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine.
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On 16 and 17 September 1939, the Polish Army engaged in heavy fighting against the Wehrmacht on the northern outskirts of Lviv. The main battlefield was the town of Zboiska, where the 10th Cavalry Brigade under Colonel Stanisław Maczek, supported by units under the command of General Kazimierz Sosnkowski, were particularly active. Polish forces, with limited artillery support, attempted to halt the German advance towards Lviv from the north. The fighting included fierce skirmishes, involving both infantry and armor.
Defending the northern part of the city was crucial, as the Germans sought to cut off Lviv from its rear and force it to capitulate quickly. Despite supply shortages and a deteriorating strategic situation, Maczek and Sosnkowski's units managed to hold off the enemy, and the battles for Zboiska and Skniłów went down in history as some of the most dramatic episodes in the city's defense. On 17 September, however, the situation changed dramatically: the Red Army's aggression against the Eastern Borders of the Second Polish Republic placed Lviv under simultaneous pressure from two armies. The heroic defense came at the cost of heavy losses, and fallen soldiers were often buried in close vicinity to the battlefield. One such burial site was located in Lviv-Zboiska.