Danube river's low water levels reveal remains of WWII soldiers and motorcycle

The bodies of two World War Two German soldiers have been found in Budapest's Danube river, due to record-low water levels after an intense drought.

Found alongside their remains were the identification tags of the two soldiers, a largely intact German army Wehrmacht motorcycle, a wedding ring and a Kuban shield - a combat badge of the Wehrmacht, the German War Graves Commission said.

The remarkable finds have sparked hope that some families could finally discover the fates of their ancestors, more than 80 years on from the war.

"Now begins a puzzle, in which we will try to determine the identity of the two dead," Arne Schrader, of the German War Graves Commission, told German newspaper Bild.

The wreck in the Danube was reportedly discovered on 2 August, when a passersby reported part of the motorcycle protruding from the rocks on the riverbank in downtown Budapest.

The team also found anti-tank mines, leading to the temporary closure of the riverbank as a bomb disposal unit was deployed.

Some of the items found in the river, notably the identification tags and motorcycle, are remarkably well-preserved due to the mixture of harbour sludge and oil found on the river bed, the German War Graves Commission said.

The commission is a German non-profit organisation that searches, recovers and buries the war dead on behalf of the German government.