Authorities in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue said Thursday local construction workers, who were clearing site for a road project, found a mass grave of Vietnamese soldiers killed during the Vietnam War.

The 17 remains of the soldiers were found in a rural village in Phong Dien District.

Following the excavation, the remains were re-buried in a local memorial for war martyrs.

The provincial military forces have sent soldiers to the village to expand search on the road in case more remains can be found.

The soldiers are believed to have been killed during an attack by American forces in the late 1960s.

Villagers said the soldiers may have been killed in 1968, when a Vietnamese battalion was stationed in the Phong Dien District.

A fierce battle between the battalion and American forces broke out in late April, 1968, during which many Vietnamese soldiers were killed, they said.

More than 3 million Vietnamese soldiers and civilians, and 58,000 US troops died in the Vietnam War.