BELGRADE, Yugoslavia?The remains of three American brothers of ethnic Albanian origin who were killed and dumped in a mass grave in Serbia will be sent to the United States, the U.S. Embassy said Tuesday.

Ylli, Agron and Mehmet Bytyqi were living in New York City when they decided to leave the United States to fight for Kosovo’s independence against Serb forces in 1998-1999.

The bodies were found and identified last June with more than 70 other Kosovo Albanians in Petrovo Selo, about 120 miles east of Belgrade.

An investigation is underway to identify who carried out the killings, committed during the rule of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade said.

The Petrovo Selo and other mass graves recently discovered in Serbia are considered key evidence of the crimes committed by Serbian forces under Milosevic’s command.