Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers decides what to do with invaders' bodies

KATERYNA TISHCHENKO — SUNDAY, 6 MARCH 2022, 17:13

Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has decided how it will ensure the collection of Russia invading forces' bodies.

Source: Decree by the Cabinet of Ministers from 5 March

Details: It was noted that the decree was adopted in particular to not allow the sanitary and epidemiological situation to get worse or to permit dangerous infectious diseases to emerge in Ukraine due to the presence of the unburied bodies (remains) of dead soldiers involved in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

According to the decree, military administrations, as well as local governments, will organise body collection efforts.

Military administrations will ensure the formation of special groups among Ukraine's territorial defence forces, the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the National Police, the State Emergency Services, the offices of prosecutorial medical examiners, (by agreement), law enforcement investigator personnel, civil and religious associations (by agreement), non-governmental organisation (by agreement), volunteers (by agreement) and others.

Special groups will provide body bags to collect and transport bodies, hygienic products, uniforms and photographic equipment, specialised vehicles to transport bodies. If specialised vehicles are not available, available transport with provisional external markings of a "red cross on a white background" to provide for the safety of the members of these specialised groups.

Furthermore, the decree notes that, whenever possible, journalists should be involved in filming video and taking photographs of body collection efforts to provide information on the real consequences of Russia's military invasion of Ukraine.

A special call centre under the National Police will be formed to provide operational information from the Armed Forces and law enforcement agencies regarding the location of bodies.

Bodies will be transported to morgues. However, if they are not available, they will be transported to another place identified for separate storage and will later be moved to a location for collection and storage and will be placed in special refrigerated railway cars and/or refrigerated trailers for automobile transportation.

After bodies are gathered at morgues and collection points, they will be delivered to a single collection centre from which they will be further transported to their final destination in Russia.

The transfer of bodies to Russian and temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory will be done with the participation and involvement of international organisations (associations) only after the final identification of the dead is carried out no more than 15 days.

Unidentified bodies (remains) of dead Russian forces will remain in refrigerated storage at their collection points until their identities can be established.