Bodies of another 1,200 Ukrainians returned from Russia
Photo: the bodies of fallen defenders returned to Ukraine (t.me/Koord_shtab)
The bodies of another 1,200 deceased Ukrainians have been returned to Ukraine. Some of them are fallen defenders, according to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
"As a result of the repatriation efforts, the bodies of 1,200 deceased individuals have been returned to Ukraine," the Headquarters emphasized.
According to the Russian side, the bodies belong to Ukrainian citizens, including servicemen.
It is noted that this repatriation took place in accordance with agreements reached in Istanbul.
The return of the bodies was made possible thanks to the joint efforts of representatives from the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Joint Center under the Security Service of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the Office of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, the Secretariat of the Commissioner for Persons Missing Under Special Circumstances, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, and other entities of Ukraine's Security and Defense Sector.
Subsequently, law enforcement investigators, together with forensic institutions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, will carry out all necessary examinations and identify the repatriated bodies.
"We express our gratitude to the International Committee of the Red Cross for their support," the Headquarters added.
At the same time, the Coordination Headquarters expressed special thanks to the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who transport the repatriated bodies to designated state specialized institutions and organize their handover to law enforcement agencies under the Ministry of Internal Affairs and to forensic experts under the Ministry of Health.
Large prisoner exchange: What the parties agreed on
Following the second round of negotiations in Istanbul on June 2, the Russian and Ukrainian delegations agreed to exchange all severely wounded and seriously ill prisoners of war, as well as those aged between 18 and 25.
It was stated that the exchange of these categories would be based not on numerical parity, but on the all for all principle. In addition, the parties agreed on the repatriation of approximately 6,000 bodies of fallen soldiers.
However, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has cautioned that exchanges involving bodies must be approached carefully, as the Russians have identified no more than 15–20% of the bodies in their possession.
Who has already been returned
The new large-scale prisoner exchange began on June 9. On that day, the first group of released servicemen aged under 25 returned home.
The number of returned soldiers was not disclosed. The Coordination Headquarters explained that, for security reasons, the final figures of those released would be made public only after the exchange process is completed.
On June 10, the second stage of the exchange took place. Prisoners from the category of severely wounded and seriously ill were returned home. A group of defenders who had sustained severe injuries and suffer from serious health conditions was freed from Russian captivity.
The following day, on June 11, a body exchange was carried out under the agreements reached in Istanbul during the second round of negotiations. As a result of the repatriation efforts, the bodies of 1,212 fallen defenders were returned to Ukraine.
Already on June 12, another group of prisoners of war returned to Ukraine after being released from Russia. RBC-Ukraine revealed the first footage of the exchange and provided detailed coverage of the event.
