In a secret location in Donetsk Oblast, eastern Ukraine, volunteers honour fallen soldiers left behind on battlefields. "Everyone deserves a resting place," insists Oleksii Yukov. He leads the volunteer organisation Platsdarm in Sloviansk. "Our duty is to bring them home, including Russian soldiers." Nearly every week, they venture into the most dangerous areas of the frontline in Ukraine.

"They seem so alone. I promise to bring them back,"

 For many families, Yukov is their last hope for closure.

 A red ribbon indicates that a Russian soldier was infected with HIV. The metal chip has a number that makes it possible to identify them.

The number plate on their cars reads "200," indicating they carry the dead. A Bible, a ticking clock, each item found tells a life lost in vain. "These were people's lives," he reflects, often about Russian soldiers left for over a year.

“These aren't just some bones. This was a person's whole life, which ended for nothing.” 

“Sometimes we find clocks that are still ticking.”

This bible was just found in the pocket of a deceased Wagner soldier.

 Platsdarm delivers bodies to Ukrainian authorities. Ukrainians are buried in their native soil; Russians are exchanged for fallen Ukrainian soldiers.

The death toll of this war remains uncertain—tens to hundreds of thousands lost.

Yukov aims to save soldiers' souls, prompting Russian families to urge an end to war. “Would you want your children's lives to end in a black bag? Be proud of those who live. Say no, stop this war. It is in their power.”

Reporter: Kari Skeie/NRK

Photo: ©Frode Fjerdingstad/NRK