16 more Nepali youths lost their lives in Russia-Ukraine war, 276 Nepalis also claimed to be missing

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Kathmandu, 20 March 2024, Wednesday

A large number of Nepali citizens are losing their lives in the war between Russia and Ukraine.

The death toll of Nepali youths recruited into the Russian army to fight on behalf of Russia is steadily increasing. In the latest case, there has been an uproar in Nepal after the information that 16 Nepali youths died in the Russia-Ukraine war came to light. So far 33 Nepali citizens have lost their lives in this war.

Traditionally, Nepali citizens and especially Gorkhas are recruited in the Indian Army, but as the Nepali Army has banned the recruitment of Gorkhas in the Indian Army, Nepali youths are joining the Russian army in opposition to the Indian Army's Agniveer scheme.

The government of Nepal has once again appealed to the Nepali youths killed in the war on behalf of Russia to return to their homeland and announced to collect DNA samples of the families of the killed Nepali people and send them to Russia. So that the people who lost their lives can be identified.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal has already clarified that the country with which the agreement is signed will allow its citizens to join the army of that country. On the other hand, more than 200 Nepalese families have submitted applications to the Nepalese government to bring back their family members.

According to a statistic, currently around 620 Nepali citizens are serving in the Russian army. So far 116 Nepalese have been injured and 274 are missing. Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister have also raised this issue with the Russian government and have asked all Nepalis working in Russia to bring back the bodies of those who died in Russia to Nepal, to provide compensation to the families and to work in Russia. It has sought cooperation from the Russian government to send back the troops.