This week, we were pleased to welcome the Ambassador of Belgium to the Netherlands, His Excellency Koen Adam, to ICMP’s HQ and DNA labs in The Hague. Director-General @KatBomberger briefed Ambassador Adam on ICMP’s work to locate and identify missing persons and to support states in building lasting institutions to address the issue. Belgium is one of the original signatories of the Agreement on the Status and Functions of ICMP, signed in December 2014, which established ICMP as an international organization based in The Hague. We thank Belgium for its continued support of ICMP’s mission and look forward to our ongoing cooperation. @BEinNL #ICMP #MissingPersons #Belgium #TheHague

The implementation of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Law on Missing Persons, more than two decades after its adoption, and the challenges families continue to face in exercising their rights were the focus of a meeting held in BiH. Organized by the Coordination of Associations of Families of Missing Persons in BiH, the meeting brought together representatives of the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of BiH, the Missing Persons Institute of BiH, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and ICMP. Families expressed dissatisfaction with the implementation of the Law and called for more concrete support in exercising their rights. Discussions focused on the main challenges and possible measures to improve support for families. The meeting was held as part of a project supported through ICMP’s Grants Programme, with financial support from the @eubih ICMP supports efforts to ensure that the rights and needs of families of missing persons are addressed as part of the ongoing process of accounting for the missing.

📢 New open position: Director of Science and Technology 🌍 Location: The Hague, the Netherlands Requirements: ✅Education: Advanced university degree in a relevant scientific or forensic field, such as biological/forensic anthropology, biology, forensic science, pathology, genetics or archaeology; ✅Experience: Minimum 10 years of relevant professional experience, including significant senior-level experience in scientific/forensic leadership and management; ✅Languages: Professional fluency in written and spoken English; proficiency in additional languages is desirable. Interested?👉 Check out the details and apply here: icmp.bamboohr.com/careers/34…

Representatives of Beyond Srebrenica Scotland visited the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) office in Sarajevo to learn about ICMP’s work in accounting for missing persons from the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, including the genocide in Srebrenica. Participants got insights in in how ICMP assisted the countries in the region to account for around 75 percent of the more than 40,000 persons reported missing from the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, including more than 90 percent of the approximately 8,000 victims of the Srebrenica genocide.

📢 New open position: Intern, HR Policy 🌍 Location: The Hague, the Netherlands Requirements: ✅ Education: Currently enrolled in a master’s degree or in the final year of a bachelor’s program in International Law, Human Rights, International Relations, Public Administration, or a related discipline, ✅ Languages: Professional proficiency in written and spoken English. Interested?👉 Check out the details and apply here: icmp.bamboohr.com/careers/34…

On 5-7 October, the exhibition "Born of War" was presented in Barcelona and Madrid, Spain. Created by UA Heritage and supported by ICMP with funding from @noradno, the art project is dedicated to the families of Ukrainian defenders who went missing as a result of the war. In Barcelona, visitors explored the stories and works in the exhibition, and members of the Ukrainian community took part in art therapy workshops and received practical information on searching for missing persons. In Madrid, the opening brought together the Ukrainian community, Spanish civil society, the Embassy of Ukraine and partner organizations. More than 114,000 people in Ukraine are considered missing under special circumstances. Behind every number is a family waiting for answers. "Art can reach people in ways that statistics cannot," said Nihad Brankovic, Deputy Head of ICMP's Ukraine Program. ICMP is grateful to the Orthodox Parish of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Volodymyr in Madrid and the Parish of Saints Joseph, Monica and Josaphat, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic parish, in Barcelona for their support in organizing the event and for generously providing their church premises free of charge. Read more: icmp.int/news/born-of-war-ex… #BornOfWar #MissingPersons #Ukraine #ICMP

Interns from the @PCRCBiH visited ICMP’s office in Sarajevo to learn more about ICMP’s work in the Western Balkans, where ICMP has assisted states in accounting for more than 75% of the estimated 40,000 people who went missing during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia. The discussion also focused on ICMP’s global mandate and its role in supporting countries to address the issue of missing persons.

ICMP welcomed a delegation of judges and magistrates, from Malta to its Headquarters in The Hague. The visit provided an opportunity to present ICMP's work in locating and identifying missing persons, and to discuss the role of forensic science and international cooperation in supporting justice, accountability and the rule of law. We thank our Maltese colleagues for their engagement and valuable exchange, and we look forward to continued cooperation. #ICMP #MissingPersons #RuleOfLaw #Justice #Malta

ICMP has provided Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs with 10 sets of specialized photography equipment to help identify the deceased. Each set includes a camera, lenses, and special filters, enabling specialists to take clear, high-quality images of identifying features such as tattoos. This visual record complements forensic and DNA analysis and can help bring families of the missing closer to answers. The donation is part of ICMP's support to Ukrainian institutions working to locate missing persons and identify the deceased. It was made possible by the generous support of the German Federal Foreign Office. @AuswaertigesAmt #ukraine #missingpersons

Remembering the victims of the 1990s conflicts requires continued attention, new approaches and new ideas to keep the issue of missing persons in the public focus. This was the key message of a roundtable held in Brčko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, organized by the Republican Organization of Fallen Soldiers and Missing Civilians as part of a project supported through ICMP’s Small Grants Program, with financial support from the @eubih With thousands of people still missing in BiH and across the region, remembrance and memorialization remain important for families still waiting for answers and for ensuring that the experiences of those affected are not forgotten by future generations.

On the margins of Pathways to Peace: The Second International Conference on Returning Ukrainian Children, Detained Civilians and Prisoners of War, ICMP Director-General @KatBomberger held bilateral meetings at ministerial, deputy ministerial and ambassadorial level with representatives of Norway, Canada, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Germany and the United States. The meetings provided an opportunity to strengthen cooperation on missing persons and discuss the importance of effective mechanisms to account for missing persons and uphold the rights of families to know the fate and whereabouts of their missing loved ones. "Accounting for the missing is a responsibility of the state, but no state can address a crisis of this scale alone," Ms Bomberger said. ICMP also discussed the role of international cooperation in supporting effective investigations, identification, and accountability, including through the collection and exchange of information and evidence. "Finding and identifying the missing is not separate from justice," she added. Strong partnerships are essential to ensuring that efforts to address missing persons remain firmly grounded in human rights and the rule of law, with work that is "nationally led, with families at its center." #PathwaysToPeace #MissingPersons #HumanRights #Ukraine #InternationalCooperation @CanadaFP @MFA_Ukraine @NorwayMFA

On 28-29 September 2026, ICMP Director-General @KatBomberger joined ministers of foreign affairs and delegations from more than 80 countries, international organisations and civil society leaders in Toronto, Canada, for Pathways to Peace: The Second International Conference on Returning Ukrainian Children, Detained Civilians and Prisoners of War. The conference brought together partners to discuss practical measures to address the unlawful deportation and forcible transfer of children, the unlawful detention of civilians, and the protection and return of prisoners of war. Addressing the conference, Ms Bomberger said: "At the heart of each of the three urgent challenges before this Conference is a question no family should be forced to ask: Where is my loved one?" She underlined that bringing Ukrainian children, detained civilians and prisoners of war home "is inseparable from the broader task of accounting for the scale of the missing in Ukraine," where more than 114,000 people are recorded as missing under special circumstances. ICMP's participation underscored the importance of effective mechanisms to establish the fate and whereabouts of missing persons, identify human remains, and provide families with answers, essential elements of upholding human rights and advancing accountability. ICMP remains committed to working with international partners to strengthen cooperation, uphold the rights of families of missing persons and support the rule of law. #PathwaysToPeace #MissingPersons #HumanRights #Ukraine @CanadaFP @MFA_Ukraine @NorwayMFA

Today in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina families of missing persons discussed the legal frameworks and mechanisms available to them to exercise their rights. The roundtable was organized by the Republic Organization of Families of Captured and Fallen Soldiers and Missing Civilians and supported through ICMP’s Small Grants Program, with financial support from the @eubih. Representatives of relevant ministries and institutions joined ICMP and families in the discussion, providing an opportunity to exchange information and discuss how families can access and exercise their rights.

More than three decades after Hasan, Ferida, and Sena Klapuh disappeared while fleeing the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina, authorities from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, working with the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), have finally identified all three family members. Hasan, Ferida, and Sena Klapuh were killed on 6 July 1992 near the Piva Hydroelectric Dam in Montenegro after fleeing the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their remains have now all been identified following a complex forensic investigation that spanned two countries and involved multiple exhumations, forensic reassessments, and advanced DNA analysis. “The Klapuh family case demonstrates that even the most complex missing persons cases can be resolved when governments cooperate across borders and rely on scientific evidence,” said Samira Krehic, Head of ICMP’s Western Balkans Program. “For 34 years, this family lived without answers. Today, thanks to the determination of authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, and the application of DNA-led identification and forensic science, all three family members have been accounted for. Their case is a powerful reminder that time does not diminish the obligation to search for the missing, nor the right of families to truth and justice.” Read more: icmp.int/news/resolved-34-ye…

Hungarian news outlet Telex visited the Pereiaslav Branch of Forensic Medical Examinations and Identification, Ukraine, the only facility in Ukraine dedicated exclusively to examining remains repatriated from Russia, as well as ICMP's office in Kyiv. The visit resulted in a powerful, in-depth report by journalist Anna Bánáti, highlighting the people working to identify Ukraine's missing, and the families waiting for answers and closure. Some key takeaways on how ICMP supports Ukrainian institutions: 🔹 The facility uses a computed tomography (CT) scanner provided by ICMP, the first in Ukraine suitable for post-mortem examinations, to help forensic experts detect evidence that may assist in the investigation and identification processes. 🔹 At the request of Ukrainian authorities, ICMP can undertake additional DNA testing. Such requests may occur when, for example, remains are poorly preserved as a result of the effects of fire. 🔹 At the request of the National Police of Ukraine, ICMP meets with relatives of missing persons living abroad and collects information about the missing person as well as family reference DNA samples 🔹 ICMP and the ICRC are now planning to expand the Pereiaslav center. Daria Cherkaska, ICMP’s case coordinator in Kyiv, points out that Ukraine receives the remains of 500 to 1,000 people from Russia every month, a scale no country could be fully prepared for. She notes that Ukrainian forensic experts are gaining extensive experience in managing and examining remains from the armed conflict, with their expertise continuing to grow as the work progresses. As she puts it: "It is an indescribable feeling when we manage to return a person's body and name to their family." 📖 Full article (in Hungarian): telex.hu/kulfold/2026/09/13/… #ICMP #MissingPersons #Ukraine #ForensicScience #Identification