Ukraine brings back bodies of 99 fallen soldiers
Ukraine has brought back the bodies of 99 soldiers who died during Russia's full-scale invasion, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of the Prisoners of War reported on April 12.
The Geneva Conventions dictate that people who lost their lives during war are entitled to a dignified burial. Over 2,100 fallen soldiers have been repatriated to Ukraine in the last two years.
"After identification, the bodies of our defenders will be handed over to their families for a dignified burial," the Coordination Headquarters' statement said.
According to the headquarters, 77 of the 99 soldiers fought against Russia in the Donetsk sector of the front line, 20 in the Zaporizhzhia direction, and the other two in the Kharkiv direction.
A retrieval of the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers was conducted in collaboration with several government and military agencies, including the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the Interior Ministry, the State Emergency Service, and the Armed Forces.
The headquarters also thanked the International Committee of the Red Cross for their assistance.
In a previous transfer on March 29, the headquarters reported that the bodies of 121 fallen Ukrainian soldiers had been brought back for burial.
Kyiv has only recently released information about the total number of Ukrainian soldiers killed during the full-scale invasion.
"Each person is a very big loss for us. 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers died in this war," President Volodymyr Zelensky said in February.
"It is very painful for us."
Read also: Ukrainian government officially approves site for future military memorial cemetery
We’ve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
