60 tons of earth, 15 bodies and the promise of a second phase of exhumation: "Well hurry up, I'm 90 years old"

• Historical memory Five skeletons already in the first exhumation in Madrid of those executed after the Civil War: "If we identify one..."

Yesterday's group photograph remains for history: daughter, grandchildren, granddaughters, great-grandson, members of

and other relatives with interrupted vacations or work permits, in front of the wall from the parish cemetery of

, carrying family portraits.

There where up to 107 men and one woman, belonging to unions and left-wing parties, were shot in retaliation after the Civil War.

This first exhumation of civilian victims in the Community of Madrid remains as a milestone, with the support of mayors of the

,

and one independent, which concludes with 13 skeletons found and two others from which samples have been taken, after 60 tons of land removed in 10 days by the

.

And with a commitment: there will be a second phase financed by the

, as confirmed by

, the minister of the branch, during his visit yesterday to the excavation.

"It is a hope for the families", stresses

, and

, granddaughters of reprisals, who did not miss a single day at the foot of the grave.

Both break into tears when asked about these days: "A lot of emotion, remembering my father a lot," says Esther.

," adds Gema.

Although the next phase is a ray of light.

"The families deserve it," Bolaños said.

"It is a matter of humanity that they can recover the remains of their loved ones."

The necessary subsidy request, after the approval of the

, amounted to

.

They only received

, so Aranzadi has only been able to open half of one of the two documented graves.

Specifically, the one that corresponds to the civil burial, because according to the testimonies of relatives, there is another one in the cemetery, known as the walk, where those who confessed before their execution were allowed to be buried.

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Five skeletons already in the first exhumation in Madrid of those executed after the Civil War: "If we identify one..."

• Writing: RUTH DÍAZMadrid

• Drafting: GRAPHIC REPORT: ÁLVARO MINGUITO/ARANZADI SOCIETY OF SCIENCES/EFE

Five skeletons already in the first exhumation in Madrid of those executed after the Civil War: "If we identify one..."

The estimate of victims in the civil grave amounted to 80, but in the excavated half, 13 have been discovered in three ditches, which will be sent to the

to continue with the genetic comparison.

"Their skulls were quite crushed and the type of fractures that occur in fresh bone," explains

,

.

They appear to match firearm projectiles, compatible with the coup de grâce, though they must be reconstructed in the lab "to confirm what we're talking about."

Two other skeletons remain under the grave of a Republican mayor, imprisoned but not executed, who asked "to be buried with his own" after his death in the 1990s. They have also found buckles, buttons,

- "we usually find them in many graves" - and two combs.

Both Aranzadi and the ACVSSR

, but as García-Rubio and Carreras detail, the executions took place on 12 different days from April to December 1939, so "perhaps each ditch has to do with different repressive moments" .

One of them had up to three levels of burial.

"But there are 13 complete skeletons and clear evidence of what happened," says Carreras.

Though...

, daughter of one of the victims,

already warned the

,

, during his official visit yesterday: "Well, hurry up, I'm 90 years old."

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