Ukrainian serviceman, taken prisoner and declared dead, visits his own grave PHOTO FACT
Ukrainian serviceman Nazar Daletsky from Lviv region returned home after almost four years of Russian captivity and on the very first day visited his own grave, writes nta.ua.
Nazar Daletsky was released during a prisoner exchange on February 5. He then learned that several years ago, his relatives had mistakenly buried another person because a DNA test incorrectly showed a match. He was officially considered deceased.
Upon arriving in his native village of Velyky Doroshiv in the Lviv region, Daletsky visited the cemetery where his "grave" stood. The Ukrainian flag had already been removed from it, and the remains of the unknown soldier were exhumed. Nazar noted that not everyone gets to see their own funeral and find out who mourned them.
His mother found out about her son's return on February 5 when she received a phone call. She couldn't hold back her emotions and said she had waited a very long time for this moment.
Daletsky was captured in May 2022 during battles in eastern Ukraine. He was beaten in captivity and lost a lot of weight. At the same time, the Ukrainian system for identifying the dead is overloaded, which leads to errors, including with DNA.
This is the first known case where a soldier was considered dead and even buried, but turned out to be alive. The state has acknowledged the error and will not demand the return of the compensation paid to the family.
To officially restore Nazar Daletsky's status, a court must recognize that he is alive.
When Daletsky returned to the village, dozens of people met him. Some even doubted if it was really him. The family jokes that he now has "two lives," and the day of his return will be celebrated as a new birthday.
Symbolically, the room where he is now sitting among relatives and celebrating his return was, several years ago, the place where his coffin stood during the funeral.
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