Bodies of Belgian climbers missing since 1992 found on Swiss Alps glacier

The bodies of two Belgian climbers, missing for 34 years, have been recovered from the Trift glacier in the Swiss Alps following its melt. A hiker discovered the remains on July 26 in the southern Swiss canton of Valais, near the Italian border.

Authorities transported the bodies to the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the Valais Hospital in Sion for identification. A DNA comparison confirmed they were the two climbers who vanished in the Weissmies region in 1992. The men were 39 and 41 years old at the time of their disappearance.

The Valais cantonal police maintain a list of missing persons, primarily from high mountain areas and rivers, dating back to 1925. The accelerating melt of glaciers due to climate change has increasingly led to the discovery of climbers' bodies, some of whom have been trapped for decades. Last year, the remains of a Swiss climber who disappeared in 1994 were found on another glacier in the same region.

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A direct comparison of DNA profiles has formally established that these are two climbers who disappeared in the Weissmies region in 1992.