2:55PM, SAT 7 JUN 2014

WW2 soldiers' bodies found washed up in Pacific

Last updated Sat 7 Jun 2014

The bodies floated away from their graves in the remote Marshall Islands. Credit: Google Maps

Rising sea levels have washed the remains of at least 26 Japanese World War Two soldiers from their graves on the low-lying Marshall Islands in the Pacific, according to the nation's foreign minister.

"There are coffins and dead people being washed away from graves. It's that serious," Tony de Brum told reporters on the sidelines of UN climate change talks in Germany.

Blaming climate change, which threatens the existence of the islands that are only 2 metres (6 ft) above sea level at their highest, de Brum said: "Even the dead are affected."

"We think they are Japanese soldiers," he added.

A UN Study on Thursday said changes in Pacific winds and currents meant sea levels in the region had risen faster than the world average since the 1990s.

http://www.itv.com/news/update/2014-...n-the-pacific/