Leaders of Indigenous groups in Canada said on Thursday that investigators have found hundreds of unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school for Indigenous children. The tragic discovery follows last month's report of 215 bodies found at another school.
The bodies were discovered at the Marieval Indian Residential School, which operated from 1899 to 1997 where the Cowessess First Nation is now located.
A search with ground-penetrating radar resulted in 751 'hits,'' indicating that at least 600 bodies were buried in the area, said Chief Cadmus Delorme of the Cowessess.
Delmore said that the graves were marked at one time, but that the Roman Catholic Church that operated the school had removed the markers.
“The Pope needs to apologise for what happened. an apology is one stage in the way of a healing journey,” he said.
Last month the remains of 215 children, some as young as 3 years old, were found buried on the site of what was once Canada's largest Indigenous residential school near Kamloops, British Columbia.