The future of the Kokkuthoduvai mass grave excavation and exhumation appears uncertain, with the Mullaitivu Judicial Medical Officer, K. Vasudeva, indicating that it may be halted indefinitely.
The Judicial Medical Officer was questioned as to when the excavations were expected to resume and when the investigation results for the 17 skeletal remains already exhumed would be made public.
According to Vasudeva, he was informed by the Mullaitivu District Secretariat finance department on October 4th that the allocated funds for the excavation have been depleted. Consequently, he believes that the excavation is likely to remain suspended indefinitely, and there may be delays in conducting investigations into the skeletal remains that have already been exhumed.
The excavation of the Kokkuthoduvai mass grave site began on September 6th and continued until September 15th. During this period, 17 skeletal remains were recovered, along with various materials, including pieces of metal suspected to be remnants of weapon, a Russian water filtration device, dog tags, clothing with identification numbers sewn into them and women's undergarments. Bullets were found to be embedded in some of the skulls recovered from the site.
When the excavation was initially halted on September 15th, Vasudeva expressed his expectation that it would resume in the third week of October with the same team. However, the current claims of financial constraints have cast uncertainty over this plan.
