Interior Minister of Ukraine Arsen Avakov has said that over the years of the country's independence a total of 1,671 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty, and since the beginning of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) in the eastern part of Ukraine a total of 455 policemen were killed, the press service of the Interior Ministry has reported.

Axar.az reports citing Interfax that the deputies of the Minister of Internal Affairs, the leadership of the National Police, the State Emergency Situations Service, the National Guard, the State Border Guard, and Migration Services, the National Academy of the Interior, the ATO veterans and relatives of the deceased law enforcement officers have paid tribute to the deceased colleagues.

"Unfortunately, the number of causalities in law enforcement ranks since the start of the anti-terrorist operation has grown. In a stubborn struggle with the Russian invaders for the territorial integrity of Ukraine in the ATO/JFO [Joint Forces Operation] zone, 455 employees of internal affairs bodies were killed, 1920 were wounded, 34 were missing, and 341 were disabled. 1 captive, 243 minor children were left without a father," the minister said while honoring the memory of law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty on the Solomianska Square in Kyiv on Thursday.