1003 bodies of fallen soldiers returned to Ukraine
A total of 1003 bodies, which the Russian side claims belong to Ukrainian servicemen, have been returned to Ukraine. The repatriation activities were carried out with the participation of state security and defence agencies and international partners. Source: Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
Law enforcement investigators, together with expert institutions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, will conduct a full range of forensic medical examinations and identify the repatriated bodies. After that, the victims will be handed over to their families for a decent burial.
The return of the bodies was made possible thanks to the coordination of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Joint Centre at the Security Service of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Emergency Service, the Ombudsman's Office and other structures. A separate role in logistics was played by the civil-military cooperation units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which provided transportation to specialised state institutions.
The Ukrainian side thanked the International Committee of the Red Cross for its assistance in the repatriation. In general, since the beginning of the full-scale war, such operations have become one of the key humanitarian areas that allow returning fallen defenders home.
