Oksana Dudar, left, the wife of Viktor Dudar, hugs her mother-in-law at her husband's funeral Tuesday in Lviv, Ukraine. Viktor was a soldier who was killed by Russian forces. A U.S. defense analyst estimates more than 1,500 were killed in the first five days of the war. The Ukrainian military tells NPR it isn't disclosing the number of soldiers lost in the fight with Russia.
The first of Ukraine's fallen soldiers are starting to return home.
At a Ukrainian Greek Catholic church in the country's western city of Lviv, which has so far been spared the worst of Russia's invasion, hundreds gathered Tuesday to receive the bodies of 44-year-old Viktor Dudar and 24-year-old Ivan Koverznev.
Dudar was a journalist-turned-soldier. Koverznev was a lieutenant. Both men were killed by Russian forces a week into the invasion.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Soldiers and priests walk into the Church of the Most Holy Apostles Peter and Paul on Tuesday in downtown Lviv, Ukraine, carrying a cross and an image of Ivan Koverznev, a Ukrainian lieutenant who was killed by Russian forces on March 2.
A U.S. defense analyst estimates more than 1,500 Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the first five days of the war. The Ukrainian military tells NPR it isn't disclosing the number of soldiers lost so far in the fighting.
But even without an official death count, the toll of Russia's invasion is already becoming more visible in towns and cities across Ukraine.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Mourners attend the funeral of two soldiers, Ivan Koverznev, 24, and Viktor Dudar, 44, at the Church of the Most Holy Apostles Peter and Paul on Tuesday in downtown Lviv, Ukraine.
After the funeral, at Lviv's Lychakiv Cemetery, as the coffins were lowered into their graves, an old colleague of Dudar's — another journalist-turned-soldier who had come to pay his respects — looked on, certain there would be many more funerals to come.
"A lot of people are going to be killed from Lviv," he said.
Next to his friend's final resting place sat three other open graves awaiting three more soldiers who were to be put to rest later that night.
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Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
A funeral procession makes its way through the Lychakiv cemetery in Lviv, Ukraine, on Tuesday.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
A soldier is overcome with grief during a funeral procession for two of her fallen comrades in the Lychakiv cemetery in Lviv, Ukraine, on Tuesday.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Sofia Dudar (left) and her mother, Oksana Dudar, oversee the burial of Viktor Dudar, their father and husband, respectively, who was killed by Russian forces. Viktor was a journalist-turned-soldier.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Soldiers fire rounds as a salute to the two soldiers who were killed during funeral services Tuesday in Lviv, Ukraine.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Men fill graves with dirt while soldiers and other mourners look on Tuesday in Lviv, Ukraine.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
Ukrainian journalist-turned-soldier Viktor Dudar's mother (center) grieves at his grave as he's laid to rest Tuesday in Lviv, Ukraine.
Claire Harbage / NPR
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NPR
After the burial, soldiers and other mourners continue to pay their respects at the soldiers' gravesides. Three open graves and loose dirt stand prepared to receive more bodies after funeral services scheduled for Tuesday evening.
Graham Smith is a Senior Producer on NPR's Investigations team and winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for audio reporting. He works with staffers, station reporters and independent journalists to dig deep and create sound-rich, long-form stories and series.
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