Through open-source research, Mediazona, a Russian independent media outlet, together with BBC Russia, confirmed the names of 72,899 Russian soldiers who had been killed since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion.
Since Mediazona's last update in late-September, the names of 1,842 Russian soldiers have been added to the list of casualties.
The journalists note that the actual figures are likely significantly higher, as their verified information comes from public sources such as obituaries, posts by relatives, regional media reports, and statements from local authorities.
According to the journalist, Russian soldiers killed in action in 2024 tend to be increasingly older in age as the average age for volunteer recruits continues to soar. The plurality of volunteer recruits killed in the war fall most prominently between the ages of 48 and 50 years old.
Since Russia began its all-out war against Ukraine over 4,100 officers have been killed in combat in Ukraine. The analysts also note that at least 13,438 Russian inmates have been killed on Ukraine's eastern front.
According to Mediazona's estimates, a majority of those killed in action come from Rostov, Sverdlovsk, Bashkiria, and Chelyabinsk oblasts, as well as the Buryatia republic. A surge of recruitment by the Kremlin in the predominantly Muslim regions of Bashkortostan and Tatarstan have also showed an increase in those killed in action in recent months.
The last few month, amid the renewed Kharkiv offensive as well as Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast, Russian forces have experienced some of its heaviest losses since the start of the full-scale war.
On July 5, Russian media outlets Meduza and Mediazona published an estimated report indicating that approximately 120,000 Russian troops have been killed since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine - although that number is likely significantly higher in the months since the report's release.
As of August 12, 2024, the Ukrainian military estimates Russian combat losses at 667,630 troops - which likely includes Russian military personnel that have been killed, injured, captured, and missing in action.
Dmytro Basmat
