Ukraine returns bodies of 38 defenders

The Ministry for the Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine said this in a statement on Telegram, Ukrinform reports.

"The bodies of service members who gave their lives for Ukraine have been handed over. Today, it was possible to return the bodies of 38 defenders to their relatives," the statement said.

The operation was carried out with the cooperation of Ukraine's Commissioner for Missing Persons, Oleh Kotenko, and a number of law enforcement agencies.

The ministry said that the process of returning the bodies takes place in accordance with the norms of the Geneva Convention.

In total, Ukraine has returned the bodies of 663 defenders since the beginning of the work of the Commissioner's Office.

On October 11, Ukraine returned the bodies of 62 fallen defenders, including those from the Olenivka penal colony.