Excavations will begin on Monday at farmland on the Greek island of Kos in the hunt for missing Sheffield toddler Ben Needham.
Ben was 21 months old when he disappeared on 24 July 1991 during a family holiday.
New information revealed 10 days ago suggested he could have been crushed to death by a digger.
South Yorkshire Police said the dig was expected to take 10 to 12 days with “unusual items” undergoing testing.
A spokesman added that a decision on whether to start work on a second site would be made after work had finished at the first.
The Needham family has been informed of the latest developments.
Builder claim
The new investigation was triggered by a friend of builder Konstantinos Barkas.
It was claimed Mr Barkas may have accidentally killed Ben while clearing land with an excavator close to where the toddler was playing on the day he vanished.
Mr Barkas reportedly died of stomach cancer last year, months before detectives from South Yorkshire Police arrived on the island for a renewed investigation.
His widow Varvara strongly dismissed any suggestions her late husband had
killed Ben.
The boy’s mother and grandparents were renovating a farmhouse in the village of Iraklise when he vanished.
His family and supporters have led a campaign to find him, while his mother and police officers have appeared on Greek television to appeal for information.
Earlier this year, South Yorkshire Police secured funding from the Home Office to send 10 officers to Kos to carry out further investigations.
The disappearance of Ben Needham
24 July 1991: Ben Needham vanishes after travelling to Kos with his mother and grandparents.
September 1991: Ben’s family returns to England due to illness, but his mother Kerry Needham continues to campaign for her son to be found.
February 2011: Prime Minister David Cameron responds to Mrs Needham, offering to support South Yorkshire Police and to press the Greek authorities.
May 2011: BBC airs a programme called “Missing 2011” which includes a segment on Ben.
September 2011: Greek police on Kos reopen Ben’s case.
October 2012: A police operation focusing on a mound of earth and rubble close to where Ben was last seen finds no trace of him.
October 2013: Police say a DNA test carried out on a man in Cyprus proves he is not Ben Needham.
March/April 2015: A DNA test on another man in Greece proves negative.
January 2015: South Yorkshire Police gets £700,000 from the Home Office to continue the investigation.
March 2016: The force secures a further £450,000 in funding.
May 2016: A team of 10 South Yorkshire Police officers visits Kos to carry out house-to-house visits.
September 2016: Police say two locations on the island will be excavated.
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