Majority of remains believed to be Ukrainian POWs killed in IL-76 crash match relatives' DNA
Source: Bohdan Okhrimenko, the head of the secretariat of Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, in an interview with Ukrinform news agency
Quote: "Indeed, 62 bodies were handed back to us in December. The Security Service of Ukraine is investigating the case. So far, nearly 50 preliminary matches have been made between the remains handed over by Russia and the DNA of relatives who have contacted the Coordination Centre.
We have received the remains that Russia claims are from the bodies on the plane, but the Coordination Centre has no evidence to confirm they were on board."
Previously: On 8 November 2024, the bodies of 563 fallen Ukrainian defenders were brought back to Ukraine as a result of repatriation measures.
In early December 2024, Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova claimed in an interview with the Kremlin-aligned Russian news agency RIA Novosti that Russia had handed over to Ukraine the bodies of POWs allegedly killed in the crash of an IL-76 in Belgorod Oblast on 24 January 2024.
The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War confirmed that Russia had handed over the bodies of Ukrainian defenders, whom it claimed were killed in the downing of the IL-76. However, the remains still need to be identified.
On 18 December, Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Parliamentary Human Rights Commissioner, stated that the examination of the bodies could take up to two months.
Background:
On 24 January, a Russian Il-76 aircraft crashed in the Korocha district of Russia's Belgorod Oblast. Ukrainska Pravda sources in Ukraine's General Staff stated the plane was carrying S-300 anti-aircraft missiles.
Following the crash of a Russian IL-76 in Belgorod Oblast, several Russian media outlets reported statements by Andrei Kartapolov, Chairman of the State Duma Defence Committee, claiming the aircraft was carrying dozens of Ukrainian POWs being transported for an exchange. Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's human rights commissioner, stated he was investigating the situation. Meanwhile, Ukraine's Defence Intelligence confirmed that a prisoner exchange was scheduled for 24 January.
A few hours after reports surfaced about the downing of the IL-76, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces issued a statement hinting that the aircraft was a military target and was transporting ammunition for the Russian military.
Subsequently, Lubinets stated that Ukraine had found no evidence supporting claims by the Russian Ministry of Defence and other officials that the IL-76 military plane, which crashed in Russia's Belgorod Oblast, was carrying a large number of POWs. Ukraine's spy chief, Kyrylo Budanov, added that the situation surrounding the IL-76 remains unclear, as Russia has not provided any evidence of the bodies.
Russia has not presented any evidence to the UN Security Council that Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board the IL-76 military transport aircraft and rejected calls for an international commission to investigate the incident near Belgorod on 24 January.
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