Uncovering the Past: How Jewish Holocaust victims were discovered at a death camp in Sobibór

Science with a Twist

💡 DNA analysis enables the identification of missing persons. Asked about the impact of DNA analysis, Dr. Diepenbroek explains that such a method helps identify the victims regardless of time passed. Forensics uses the DNA from unknown remains and matches them with the DNA of missing persons’ relatives. Alongside her colleagues — including experts from the Institute of Legal Medicine in Innsbruck — Dr. Diepenbroek worked on several projects to identify the victims of World War II and totalitarian regimes. ''This means that we are not only able to look for very distant relatives but also learn a bit more about the history of the family and their bio-geographic origin, and using such information is especially crucial when working with cold cases or historical cases.''

💡 Forensics can help answer questions regarding the history of humanity. Although the first association with forensics is solving crimes, Dr. Diepenbroek says forensic science can offer more. ''Yes, we solve crimes, but we can also solve missing persons cases — even if they are more than eight years old — because the power of forensic DNA analysis is that we can identify the victim despite how much time has passed.''

💡 The joint work of forensics and other sciences is critical. As mentioned above, forensics helps illuminate particular historical events. The Sobibor Project is an example that proves the significance of such collaborations. "We had scientists from many different fields involved — specialists in archeology, history, anthropology, and forensics — and what we achieved together showed how all of the sciences, even if a bit distant, completed and helped each other. So the remains would never have been found if it was not for the archeological work carried out in the camp, but the truth about their identity would not have been discovered without DNA analysis."