One more Nepali national serving in the Russian army has died while fighting Ukrainian forces, according to the family members of the deceased. This takes the number of Nepalis killed in the Russia-Ukraine war to seven. The government has yet to confirm the latest death.

Bharat Shah, 36, of ward 1 of Tikapur Municipality of Kailali district, who joined the Russian army three months ago, died on November 26. The family received the sad news through Shah’s colleague on Friday.

Shah’s family members, who were in a state of shock after hearing the news of his death, performed his cremation rites by making an effigy of kush, a holy grass, as per the Hindu tradition.

Mangal Shah, the younger brother of the deceased, said, “We received the news of his death on Friday from a colleague working with him. We performed the last rites on Sunday as we are unsure if the body would be repatriated.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Russian government, however, have not informed the family about the death.

Shah, who worked in Nepal Police for seven years, resigned three years ago and went to Dubai to work as a security guard.

Mangal said that Shah’s colleague Rabin Thapa of Kanchanpur informed them that Shah was shot dead on the Russia-Ukraine border on November 26.

“We were out of contact with him for three months,” said Mangal.

At least six Nepali nationals serving in the Russian army have been killed while fighting Ukrainian forces, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on December 1.

The government doesn’t permit Nepali nationals to serve in foreign armies besides in India and the United Kingdom. But that hasn’t stopped Nepali youths from enrolling individually in the militaries of several other countries.

On December 11, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said the government has received information suggesting that more than 200 Nepali nationals may be currently serving in the Russian army. However, the government lacks comprehensive data on how many Nepalis have signed up with Russian and Ukrainian forces since February 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine intending to topple the Kyiv regime.

Meanwhile, the number of Nepali nationals serving in the Russian army and held captive by Ukrainian forces has reached four, with Kyiv setting some conditions for Nepal to meet before their release.

Published on: 18 December 2023 | The Kathmandu Post