Yunnan provincial authorities have buried 24 cinerary caskets of Chinese Expeditionary Force soldiers who fought against Japanese aggression in present-day Myanmar during World War II.

The soldiers’ ashes were buried at a cemetery in Tengchong, a county in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, and a public memorial ceremony was held.

The ashes were found by Yunnan’s Overseas Chinese Affairs Office in Myanmar, with help from Buddhist monks. The office said that its next focus will be on providing better support for the Chinese Expeditionary Force’s surviving soldiers .

According to historic records, more than 300,000 soldiers fought in western Yunnan in China, and in northern Myanmar. More than 100,000 of them sacrificed their lives fighting the Japanese invaders.