‘Nobody can deal with this and not come away affected’

speaks to forensic specialist Niamh Smith about the ongoing work to identify bodies in Ukraine after Moscow agreed to the repatriation of thousands of the fallen

- 

Ukrainians in forensic suits unloading thousands of bodies of their fallen countrymen from refrigerated vehicles makes for a depressing spectacle.

But in the three-and-a-half-year-long war between Russia and Ukraine, the repatriation of the dead might be one of the rare, all-too-brief moments of cooperation between the two warring countries.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has a caseload of 154,200 people missing from both sides of the front line as of August, whose fate or whereabouts remain unknown. It is expected that it will take decades for families to receive answers about their loved ones.

According to the ICRC, there have been over 50 incidents of mass repatriation throughout the conflict to date. On average, the group receives 1,000 bodies a month, with workers given the grim task of trying to identify them so their families can finally be given peace.

A deal brokered in Istanbul between the two warring sides during the summer - one of the few positive outcomes of the US-organised peace talks to date - saw Moscow return significantly more, some 6,000. This repatriation, which took place in June, was so large that they had to receive the bodies by train.

Niamh Smith, a forensic specialist working in Ukraine for the ICRC, said the exchanges of fallen soldiers are usually silent, respectful affairs.

“Nobody is standing around chitchatting,” says Ms Smith, who is usually in the truck during the transfer. “It’s almost like a ballet in that everybody is so well tuned and well versed in their role. “It goes very smoothly and that could not happen without the full cooperation of both sides,” she says. “It’s a very human experience. Nobody can deal with that and not come away feeling... affected.”