Russia returns bodies of 1,200 more Ukrainians as part of POW swap
Russia has returned the bodies of 1,200 more Ukrainians killed in the war, according to Ukrainian authorities, bringing the total number of bodies repatriated to over 4,800, while the push for a ceasefire and an end to the conflict now in its fourth year remain elusive.
Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Ukrainian government body that oversees affairs regarding prisoners of war (POW), announced the news on Telegram, saying the handover was part of an agreement struck in talks in Istanbul earlier this month.
'I am grateful to everyone involved in this humanitarian mission,' said Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov. 'Ahead is an important and responsible stage of identification. This is a complex and delicate work that will give each family the opportunity to receive answers.'
In a series of exchanges this week, Ukraine has repatriated more than 4,800 bodies returned by Russia, in accordance with the Istanbul agreement, Ukrainian officials said. This marks one of the largest returns of war dead since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Russian state media confirmed the latest handover of 1,200 Ukrainians, but said Moscow had not received a single Russian corpse in return.
'Russia says Ukraine hasn't stuck to its side [of the deal], that it hasn't reciprocated' reported Al Jazeera's Assed Baig from Kyiv.
Ukraine has yet to comment.
As per their agreement in Istanbul, Kyiv and Moscow are to each hand over as many as 6,000 bodies and to exchange sick and heavily wounded prisoners of war and those aged under 25.
But Russia has so far reported only receiving a total of 27 Russian servicemen.
The latest handover of Ukrainians came as Russia claimed to seize the village of Malynivka in Ukraine's Donetsk region and also appeared to close in on the northeastern Sumy region.
'Russian forces are roughly 18-20kms (11.2-12.4 miles) away from the capital of the Sumy region, which has been under constant drone and missile attack,' said Baig.
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Al Jazeera
13 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Russia returns bodies of 1,200 more Ukrainians as part of POW swap
Russia has returned the bodies of 1,200 more Ukrainians killed in the war, according to Ukrainian authorities, bringing the total number of bodies repatriated to over 4,800, while the push for a ceasefire and an end to the conflict now in its fourth year remain elusive. Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Ukrainian government body that oversees affairs regarding prisoners of war (POW), announced the news on Telegram, saying the handover was part of an agreement struck in talks in Istanbul earlier this month. 'I am grateful to everyone involved in this humanitarian mission,' said Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov. 'Ahead is an important and responsible stage of identification. This is a complex and delicate work that will give each family the opportunity to receive answers.' In a series of exchanges this week, Ukraine has repatriated more than 4,800 bodies returned by Russia, in accordance with the Istanbul agreement, Ukrainian officials said. This marks one of the largest returns of war dead since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian state media confirmed the latest handover of 1,200 Ukrainians, but said Moscow had not received a single Russian corpse in return. 'Russia says Ukraine hasn't stuck to its side [of the deal], that it hasn't reciprocated' reported Al Jazeera's Assed Baig from Kyiv. Ukraine has yet to comment. As per their agreement in Istanbul, Kyiv and Moscow are to each hand over as many as 6,000 bodies and to exchange sick and heavily wounded prisoners of war and those aged under 25. But Russia has so far reported only receiving a total of 27 Russian servicemen. The latest handover of Ukrainians came as Russia claimed to seize the village of Malynivka in Ukraine's Donetsk region and also appeared to close in on the northeastern Sumy region. 'Russian forces are roughly 18-20kms (11.2-12.4 miles) away from the capital of the Sumy region, which has been under constant drone and missile attack,' said Baig.
Al Jazeera
14 hours ago
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Israel has learned no lessons from Iraq
Tel Aviv's decision to launch a new war against Iran on June 13 is a disaster in the making. No one will benefit, including the Israeli government, and many will suffer. The exchange of fire has already resulted in at least 80 people killed in Iran and 10 in Israel. It is tragically clear that the lessons of past failed military adventurism in the region have been entirely ignored. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has branded the war as 'pre-emptive', aimed at preventing Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapon. In doing so, he has repeated the strategic blunder of the last two politicians to launch an alleged 'pre-emptive' attack in the region, US President George Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. As Israeli jets and missiles streaked across the Middle East's skies and carried out their deadly strikes against Iranian military sites and military leaders, they immediately made the world a far more dangerous place. Just like the US-British invasion of Iraq, this unprovoked attack is set to bring more instability to an already volatile region. Netanyahu claimed that the attacks were meant to devastate Iran's nuclear capabilities. So far, the Israeli army has hit three nuclear facilities, Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow, causing various levels of damage. However, it is unlikely that these strikes will actually put a stop to the Iranian nuclear programme, and the Israeli prime minister knows it. The Iranian authorities have intentionally built the Natanz site deep underground so that it is impervious to all but the strongest bunker-busting bombs. Tel Aviv lacks the capability to permanently destroy it because it does not have the Massive Ordnance Penetrator or the Massive Ordnance Air Blast bombs that are produced by the United States. Washington has long refused to provide these, even under the administration of US President Donald Trump, which has coddled Israeli officials and sought to shield them from sanctions over their war crimes in the Gaza Strip. Trump's team has recently indicated again that it would not supply these arms to Tel Aviv. From US official reactions after the attack, it is not entirely clear to what extent Washington was informed. The US State Department initially distanced the US from the initial attacks, labelling them a 'unilateral' Israeli operation. Shortly after, Trump claimed that he was fully informed. The extent of US involvement – and approval – for the attack remains a major question, but it immediately ended any hopes that its intense diplomacy with Tehran over its nuclear programme in recent weeks would result in a new deal, which is a short-term win for Netanyahu. But further action against Iran appears dependent on bringing the US into the conflict. That is a huge gamble for Tel Aviv given the number of critics of US interventionism among the top ranks of Trump's advisers. The US president himself has attempted to make reversing US interventionism a key part of his legacy. Israel's actions are already harming Trump's other interests by pushing global oil prices up and complicating his relations with the Gulf states that have much to lose if the conflict disrupts shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. If Israel looks like it is winning, Trump will undoubtedly claim it as his own victory. But if Netanyahu's strategy increasingly depends on trying to drag Washington into another Middle Eastern war, he may well lash out against him. As things stand now, unless Israel decides to breach international norms and use a nuclear weapon, making any further strategic achievements in Iran would indeed depend on the US. Netanyahu's second declared goal – overthrowing the Iranian regime – also seems out of reach. A number of senior military commanders have been killed in targeted attacks, while Tel Aviv has openly called on the Iranian people to rise up against their government. But Israel's unilateral aggression is likely to bring far more anger towards Tel Aviv among Iranians than it will against their own government, regardless of how undemocratic it may be. In fact, Iranian regime assertions that a nuclear bomb is a needed deterrent against Israeli aggression now will appear more logical to those who doubted it domestically. And in other regional countries where Tehran's interests had been retreating, Netanyahu's actions risk breathing new life into these alliances. But even if Israel succeeds in destabilising Tehran, it will not bring about regional peace. This is the lesson that should have been learned from the fall of Saddam Hussein in Iraq. The collapse of the Iraqi state in the aftermath led to a major rise in extremism and ultimately to the establishment of ISIL (ISIS) that terrorised so much of the region in the 2010s. Israel has no chance of instituting a smooth transfer of power to a more pliant regime in Tehran. Occupying Iran to try to do so is out of the question given that the two countries do not share a border. US support for such an effort is also hard to imagine under the Trump administration because doing so would be sure to increase the risk of attacks against the US. In other words, Netanyahu's attacks may bring short-term tactical gains for Israel in delaying Iran's nuclear ambitions and thwarting talks with the US, but they promise a long-term strategic disaster. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
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Russia, Ukraine conduct another round of POWs exchange
Ukraine and Russia have swapped prisoners of war (POWs), the warring sides said, after Moscow also handed over the bodies of 1,200 Ukrainian soldiers to Kyiv. 'We continue to take our people out of Russian captivity. This is the fourth exchange in a week,' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on social media on Saturday. The Russian Ministry of Defence posted on Telegram that another group of Russian servicemen was returned 'from the territory controlled by the Kyiv regime' in accordance with the agreements reached by the two sides in Istanbul earlier this month. Photos published by Zelenskyy on Telegram showed men of various ages, mostly with shaved heads, wearing camouflage and draped in Ukrainian flags. Some were injured, others disembarked from buses and hugged those welcoming them, or were seen calling someone by phone, sometimes covering their faces or smiling. Moscow's Defence Ministry released its own video showing men in uniforms holding Russian flags, clapping and chanting 'Russia, Russia', 'Glory to Russia' and 'Hooray', some raising their fists in the air. The Russian soldiers are in Belarus, where they are receiving medical treatment before being transferred back to Russia, the Defence Ministry said. The ministry did not say how many POWs were involved in the latest swap. However, Russian state media reported, citing sources, that Moscow had not received any of its war dead back from Kyiv, echoing a statement Russia made on Friday when it said it had returned the bodies of 1,200 slain Ukrainian soldiers and received none of its own. Ukraine earlier on Saturday confirmed it had received the bodies of its soldiers killed in action. The latest POW exchange between Russia and Ukraine came after Moscow alleged that Kyiv had indefinitely postponed the swap of wounded and seriously ill POWs and those under the age of 25, as well as the return of the bodies of thousands of soldiers on each side. The swap came as Russia intensified its offensive along the front line, especially in the northeastern Sumy region, where it seeks to establish a 'buffer zone'. Zelenskyy claimed Russia's advance on Sumy was stopped, adding that Kyiv's forces have managed to retake one village. Meanwhile, the two sides are no closer to any temporary ceasefire agreement as a concrete step towards ending the war despite some initial momentum from the United States President Donald Trump who now appears to be losing patience in his campaign for a truce, even suggesting the two be left to fight longer, like 'children in a park', before they are pulled apart.
