Bodies of 58 More Fallen Ukrainian Soldiers Return Home

On Friday, Feb. 16, another repatriation event took place as the bodies of 58 more fallen defenders were returned to the territory controlled by Ukraine, according to Kyiv’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

The bodies and remains of the soldier will first be examined by forensic experts to formally identify the victims, after which they will be returned to their families for final internment.

The return of the fallen was achieved through the joint efforts of Ukraine’s POW coordination headquarters, the SBU, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Armed Forces, the State Emergency Service, and other representatives of the country's security and defense agencies. In addition, the International Committee of the Red Cross provided much necessary assistance to ensure that the recovery of the bodies took place.

Kyiv Post reported on Feb. 8 that Ukraine had secured the release of 100 prisoners of war, this followed an earlier larger exchange of 207 prisoners on Jan. 31. These two events bring the total that have been returned from Russian captivity so far to 3135.

The last exchange was preceded by the crash of a Russian Il-76 aircraft in the Belgorod region that Russia said carried 65 Ukrainian POWs and accused Kyiv of having shot down the plane. To date there has been no confirmation of the truth of Moscow’s assertion.