Forensic experts excavating a mass grave in eastern Bosnia said it was the largest such site they had ever unearthed and contained hundreds of Muslim victims of the 1992-95 war.
In a hilly and wooded area near the town of Zvornik, the experts have been digging down through the muddy clay soil to unearth hundreds of bones and skulls and pieces of clothing.
So far they have unearthed 359 complete bodies, many with their hands tied, and expect to find about 100 more. Among the bodies were those of an 18-month-old baby and young children.
A police spokeswoman said the remains of nine children aged one to 12 were found buried in one corner of the grave alongside women believed to have been their mothers.
Documents retrieved in the Crni Vrh (Black Peak) grave show the victims were Muslims who went missing when Bosnian Serb forces, the former Yugoslav army and Serbian irregulars swiftly captured several eastern Bosnian towns.
About 200,000 people died in the Bosnian war, in which well-armed Serb forces fought against initially allied Croats and Muslims, who later also fought each other. Thousands died in "ethnic cleansing" after the capture of towns and villages.