A Russian local official’s obituary records the death of contract soldier Alisher Svirin at 18, showing how the war has drawn in people who were children when it began.
Local official Roman Tikunov said Svirin was born Feb. 21, 2008, and died May 1, 2026. The notice identifies him as a machine gunner in the 123rd Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade. Mediazona’s public casualty database also lists him as 18 at death.
Svirin had turned 14 three days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
By June 12, the BBC Russian service and Mediazona had identified more than 200 Russian service members killed at age 18. That figure is a minimum drawn from deaths they could document, rather than a count of everyone who died at that age.
Mediazona builds its named casualty list from public records, including relatives’ posts, local reporting and official notices. It says deaths that were never reported publicly can be missing from the list. Its Oct. 23 update did not give a new count for 18-year-olds.
The war also features in material prepared for Russian classrooms. An official Sept. 21 “Important Conversations” lesson for students in grades 10 and 11 focuses on Nurmagomed Gadzhimagomedov, whom the material says died at 25. The lesson’s stated aims include teaching patriotism and service to the country.
