Anthropologists claim discovery of slain Che Guevara soldiers in Bolivia

Washington, August 22 (ANI): A team of anthropologists has claimed that five bodies found in Bolivia may be guerrilla soldiers killed four decades ago for their involvement with revolutionary leader Che Guevara.

According to a report in National Geographic News, the remains were found in the town of Teoponte, Bolivia, by a team of Argentine anthropologists.

"We have had very positive results thus far. These searches are very difficult, so we are happy with the results so far, which consist in the finding of the remains of five people," said Silvana Durnal, Forensic Anthropologist.

"We have also found two burial sites here in San Antonio where apparently the remains were removed and yes we have verified that they were in fact removed," he added.

The search is part of a joint project with Bolivia's Justice Ministry and other human rights organizations.

They are hoping to retrieve the remains of another 41 fighters that belonged to the so called Teoponte guerrilla, organized in 1970 based on Guevaras ideals. They were defeated that same year.

The Bolivian army killed most of its members and their bodies were never returned to their relatives.

According to Celima Torrico, Bolivian Justice Minister, "It's been over 38 years since the times of the Teoponte guerrilla. The remains of the missing are not all in one place, they are in different places, very dispersed."

"The anthropological team from Argentina, the Justice Ministry and Asofand (Association of the Families of the Disappeared) are in this project together to find the remains and return them to the families," Torrico added.

Guevara was born in Argentina and gained fame when he joined with Fidel Castros Cuban revolution.

He was captured and shot to death by government soldiers in Bolivia in October 1967, where he had been leading a guerrilla insurgency against the Bolivian government.

In the 40-plus years since his death, Guevara continues to be an iconic figure, particularly for leftist Latin American governments. Critics, however, saw him as a subversive agitator. (ANI)