Work to recover the remains of Japanese soldiers taken as prisoners of war during World War Two is set to begin in Bangladesh for the first time in November.
Japan’s welfare ministry says the soldiers were captured by British forces during the Battle of Imphal, in which the Imperial Japanese military sought to conquer British-controlled northeastern India.
The Japanese soldiers were taken to Bangladesh, where they reportedly died. The Japanese government learned through a field survey conducted from fiscal 2014 that there are 43 soldiers’ graves in Bangladesh.
In July, the Bangladesh government approved the recovery of the remains.
Japan plans to first send a team to a cemetery in the eastern district of Comilla, where the remains of 24 soldiers are said to be buried.
The Japan Association for Recovery and Repatriation of War Casualties, entrusted by the welfare ministry to conduct surveys of wartime remains, says the recovery work has been delayed due to worsening security in Bangladesh and the coronavirus pandemic.
It said it hopes to finally return the remains to their families, nearly 80 years after the end of World War Two.