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International Commission on Missing Persons - ICMP

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Nederland
The Hague
International Commission on Missing Persons - ICMP

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ICMP is an international organization tasked to work exclusively on the issue of missing persons.
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02/11/2026

Last week, ICMP’s DNA Laboratories at its headquarters in The Hague hosted 12 Ukrainian scientists from DNA laboratories within the Ministries of Health and Internal Affairs for training in DNA profile analysis of post-mortem samples and the validation of DNA testing methods.

The training is part of a two-year capacity-building program covering different aspects of the DNA testing workflow, delivered in collaboration with ICMP’s Center for Excellence and Learning and Ukraine program. This week’s training was organized with support from the German Federal Foreign Office (FFO).

Amt

30/10/2026

A delegation from ICMP, led by Director-General Kathryne Bomberger, concluded a visit to Hanoi, where they held meetings and technical exchanges with Vietnamese government institutions and international partners. The visit reaffirmed ICMP’s support for Vietnam’s efforts to account for persons missing from past conflicts through advanced forensic science and DNA technologies.

Working with the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), ICMP has developed NGS-based DNA workflows that generate profiles from highly degraded skeletal remains. Validation studies showed about 70% of these remains produced profiles suitable for first-degree kinship analysis. A pilot in An Giang Province now covers roughly 1,000 unidentified graves and more than 2,000 family reference samples.

“The scientific breakthrough achieved with VAST has changed what is possible for Vietnam,” Ms Bomberger said. “Remains once considered beyond the reach of DNA identification can now be linked to their families. The knowledge transfer that comes with this partnership is helping Vietnam build a nationally owned system that can account for large numbers of missing persons and become a leader in advanced forensic genetics.”

“The partnership between ICMP and Vietnamese institutions demonstrates how international cooperation and scientific innovation can help address the lasting humanitarian challenges arising from past conflicts,” said Marc Knapper, former U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam and member of ICMP’s Panel of Experts. “The progress achieved through the U.S. Government-funded project with VAST represents an important contribution to Vietnam’s national efforts to identify missing persons, particularly in support of the ongoing ‘500 Days and Nights’ campaign. Building on these achievements, continued cooperation will help strengthen Vietnam’s capacity to provide answers to families who have waited decades for news of their loved ones.”

Read more in the press release: https://icmp.int/news/icmp-strengthens-partnerships-in-vietnam-to-advance-large-scale-identification-of-missing-persons/

27/10/2026

ICMP and the Institute of Psychotherapy and Psychotraumatology (IPP) at the University of Duhok - UoD have signed a Memorandum of Collaboration to strengthen mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for families of missing persons in Iraq.

The agreement will help integrate MHPSS services into ICMP’s Iraq program, so that the needs and wellbeing of families stay at the center of the process of accounting for missing persons.

It was signed by Head of ICMP’s Iraq Program, Alexander Hug, and Director of the IPP, Prof. Dr. Jan Ilhan Kizilhan. At the IPP’s 5th International Conference, ICMP also took part in a panel on integrating MHPSS into the national missing persons process. The panel highlighted ICMP’s first dedicated MHPSS pilot, implemented in 2026 during the Mazar Sharafaddin excavation, which supported families before, during and after the excavation.

“The search for missing persons is not only about clarifying their fate and whereabouts. It is also about recognizing the emotional impact on their families,” said Mr Hug.

Families of the missing deserve support that recognizes the long-term psychological impact of disappearance, and that is grounded in dignity, care and accountability.

This activity is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

Read more: https://icmp.int/news/icmp-and-university-of-duhoks-ipp-sign-agreement-to-strengthen-mental-health-support-for-families-of-the-missing-in-iraq/

26/10/2026

We’re pleased to welcome Antonia Urrejola Noguera to ICMP’s Board of Commissioners.

Ms. Urrejola is a Chilean lawyer with more than 30 years of experience in human rights, transitional justice and international law. She is a former President of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and a former Foreign Minister of Chile.

“The search for the missing is one of the most profound human rights challenges of our time, and it is central to any society’s efforts to deal with the past,” said Ms. Urrejola.

Board Chair Knut Vollebæk said her leadership at the IACHR and in the Chilean government, together with her understanding of transitional justice, will strengthen ICMP’s ability to engage governments and support families of the missing, particularly in the Americas.

Director-General Kathryne Bomberger said Ms. Urrejola brings legal expertise, diplomatic experience and a lifelong commitment to human rights, and that her insight will help ICMP support states in addressing the issue of missing persons and upholding families’ rights to truth and justice.

Read more: https://icmp.int/news/icmp-welcomes-antonia-urrejola-noguera-to-its-board-of-commissioners/

23/10/2026

📢 New open position: OSINT Analyst Consultant (2 positions)
🌍 Location: Kyiv, Ukraine
🗓️ Duration: 12-month consultancy | Apply by: 13 November 2026
Requirements:
✅ Experience: Proven experience in OSINT analysis and report drafting, including verification, fact-checking and geolocation;
✅ Skills: Multi-language and multi-platform search techniques; basic programming knowledge (e.g. Python or SQL); psychological resilience and ethical handling of sensitive information;
✅ Languages: Proficiency in Ukrainian is required; English is an advantage (applications must be submitted in English).
Interested? 👉 Check out the details and apply here: https://icmp.bamboohr.com/careers/346?source=aWQ9MTk%3D

22/10/2026

Postgraduate students from the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, participating in a field visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina as part of the Conflict Management and Humanitarian Action program, had the opportunity to learn more about the work of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP).

The session focused on ICMP’s work in assisting Western Balkans countries in accounting for persons missing from the conflicts of the 1990s, supporting families of the missing, and strengthening institutional capacities to uphold the rights of victims and their families.

21/10/2026

Gaelle Nizery, Head of Section for Good Governance and Delphine Skowron Human Rights focal point at the Delegation of the Evropska unija u Bosni i Hercegovini visited the work of International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) in Tuzla, where they met with ICMP staff and Samira Krehić, Head of ICMP’s Western Balkans Program, to discuss progress and results achieved by ICMP and ongoing efforts to strengthen domestic capacities and ensure local ownership of the process of accounting for missing persons. The EU is a longstanding supporter of ICMP and through national IPA programes has funded various aspects of ICMP’s work in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In BiH, ICMP provides technical assistance to domestic institutions in the search for missing persons, including through DNA-led identification, and supports efforts to ensure that the rights of families of the missing are upheld. These efforts have contributed to accounting for more than 75 percent of the approximately 30,000 people who went missing during the 1990s conflict.

20/10/2026

Yesterday, the Embassy of Canada to Ukraine and ICMP co-hosted a diplomatic briefing on ongoing efforts to search for persons missing in action in Ukraine and advance DNA-based identification. The briefing was moderated by Her Excellency Tamara Mawhinney, Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine.

Participants discussed key challenges and opportunities to strengthen Ukraine’s national system for investigating missing persons cases and identifying the deceased, as well as practical ways for international partners to support these efforts.

Artur Dobroserdov, Commissioner for Persons Missing under Special Circumstances, presented the status and functioning of the Unified Register of Missing Persons and outlined the process for identifying the deceased.

Andrii Melnyk spoke about the work of the Center for Serving Families of Missing Persons and emphasized the importance of collecting reference samples from active-duty military personnel.

Ruslan Abbasov, Deputy Director of the State Scientific Research Forensic Expert Centre, explained how post-mortem DNA profiles are matched with reference samples provided by relatives to establish the identities of the deceased.

Matthew Holliday, ICMP Program Director, Europe, underscored that identifying the deceased is a fundamental right of the living, and supports accountability efforts.

“ICMP is supporting the full identification process, from examining and documenting cases of unidentified deceased persons in mortuaries across Ukraine, to data collection from families of the missing, to DNA testing and large-scale kinship matching in ICMP’s DNA laboratory,” he said.

The discussion also explored concrete steps for international cooperation and opportunities for further joint action to strengthen Ukraine’s capacity to account for missing persons and provide answers to their families.

ICMP thanks the Embassy of Canada to Ukraine for providing a space for open dialogue and the international community for its continued interest in and support for this vital work.

14/10/2026

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 Evropska unija u Bosni i Hercegovini
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.

14/10/2026

📢 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: https://icmp.bamboohr.com/careers/345?source=aWQ9MTk%3D

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Koninginnegracht 12
The Hague
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Maandag	09:00 - 17:30
Dinsdag	09:00 - 17:30
Woensdag	09:00 - 17:30
Donderdag	09:00 - 17:30
Vrijdag	09:00 - 17:30

Website

http://www.icmp.int/

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