Ukraine was able to identify the bodies and remains of 2,800 defenders who died as a result of the Russian invasion, Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets said on Friday.

At a meeting with members of the families of deceased military personnel, organized by the public organization "Heart Out" which took place as a result of the appeal of family members of military personnel with complaints about the long time it took to identify the unidentified bodies of the defenders, the Ombudsman's Office invited representatives of government agencies to communicate, find out the reasons and discuss ways that will help solve the problem of.

The meeting was attended by Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko, deputy ministers, representatives of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Main Directorate of the National Police, the Ministry of Defense, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the SBU.

"Now, according to the Minister of Health, more than 2,800 bodies and fragments have been identified. The process of searching for their relatives to return for burial is ongoing. According to government officials, the relatives cannot find the bodies of the defenders, since they have not yet been handed over to the Ukrainian side. However, the process of repatriation of bodies is taking place," Lubinets said in his Telegram channel.

According to the Ombudsman, a number of questions from those gathered concerned the time frame for identifying bodies and notifying families, the operation of the DNA database, communication with investigators, the work of experts, identification algorithms, and other things.

"The relatives were given comprehensive answers to all this," the commissioner said.

After the meeting, family members of the fallen heroes could ask representatives of government agencies personal questions.

"Ukraine is maximally interested in returning the bodies of fallen soldiers," Lubinets said.