Kenya says more than 200 of its nationals are fighting for Russia in Ukraine, with recruitment networks still operating in both Africa and Russia, according to a statement issued on 12 November by Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as reported by Reuters.

The announcement followed a statement from Ukraine last week claiming that over 1,400 citizens from three dozen African countries are currently fighting on Russia’s side. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andriy Sybiha, described the contracts offered to African recruits as “equivalent to ... a death sentence,” and called on African governments to warn their citizens.

Nairobi confirms citizens misled into joining war

The Kenyan Foreign Ministry said its citizens are being recruited into Moscow’s war effort through networks active both in Russia and in Kenya, Reuters reported. According to the statement, “over two hundred Kenyans may have joined the Russian military,” with officials warning that recruitment activities are still ongoing.

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The Ministry added that its embassy in Moscow had recorded injuries among some of the Kenyan recruits. Those injured had allegedly been promised up to $18,000, covering visa costs, travel, and accommodation. But instead of receiving non-combat roles, they were deployed to the battlefield.

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21 rescued in Kenyan raid tied to recruitment ring

Kenyan security services conducted a raid near Nairobi in September that resulted in the rescue of 21 citizens who, according to the foreign ministry, were being prepared for deployment to Ukraine. The ministry said the individuals had been deceived about the nature of their roles.

Seventeen South African men are stranded in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine after being misled into joining mercenary forces, according to the country's official statement. President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered an investigation into how the group was recruited under false pretenses and drawn into “seemingly mercenary activities” in the war zone. In August, South African authorities warned young citizens to be cautious about job offers in Russia that were circulating on social media. 

South Africa continues to present itself as non-aligned in the war, maintaining ties with both Kyiv and Moscow. Ramaphosa has met with leaders from both countries. However, the country has close relationships with Russia through the BRICS alliance.

South Africans misled by fake job offers now trapped in Donbas

South Africa’s presidency said in a statement that all 17 men, aged between 20 and 39, were "lured to join mercenary forces involved in the Ukraine-Russia war under the pretext of lucrative employment contracts." The men are currently "trapped in the war-torn Donbas" in eastern Ukraine.

The statement said the South African government is now working to repatriate them.

“President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered an investigation into the circumstances that led to the recruitment of these young men into these seemingly mercenary activities,” the presidency said.

It did not state which side the men were fighting for. Reuters says Ramaphosa's spokesperson added,

“We don't know yet, hence the investigation.”

Ostensibly without knowing whether they were fighting for Moscow or Kyiv, Pretoria is “working through diplomatic channels to secure the return of these young men following their calls for assistance to return home,” the statement reads.

Under South African law, it is illegal for citizens to participate in foreign armies or provide military assistance to foreign governments without authorization. The investigation aims to determine how these men ended up violating those provisions and whether criminal recruitment networks were involved.

Other foreigners caught by Russia in similar recruitment schemes

• Last month, Kenya’s foreign ministry reported that some of its citizens had also been deceived and were being held in Russian military camps. 
• India and Nepal have also reported that scores of their citizens were recruited to support Russia’s war under similarly false premises.
• Earlier, BBC identified 523 foreign mercenaries from 28 countries killed fighting for Russia in Ukraine. The killed mercenaries, identified by BBC, include Egyptians, Americans, Gurkhas, Central Asian convicts, and recruits from several African countries.
• The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime earlier stated that women from more than 20 African countries had been recruited under false pretenses to make drones for Russia. An AP investigation found last year that hundreds of African women were duped into working at Russia's Shahed drone factory in Tatarstan's Alabuga. 

The Kenyan government said Monday that Russian agents used deceptive methods, including falsified information, to lure Kenyan citizens into military service in Ukraine. Some victims unknowingly found themselves in Russian military operations after being promised legitimate jobs.

The Kenyan case reflects a wider pattern of Russian recruitment targeting foreign nationals. Similar schemes have reportedly involved recruits from more than 20 countries, with some forced into military service under coercion.

Kenya has engaged the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and reached an agreement for citizens held without their consent to be released to Kenya’s mission in Moscow. Several nationals have already been rescued, with emergency travel documents issued to facilitate their safe return home. 

The mission is working to establish the total number of Kenyans detained in military camps and to assist those who manage to leave voluntarily.

The government said agents masquerade as Russian officials and urged immigration and security agencies to strengthen vigilance at border points, particularly airports, to prevent further recruitment. 

“Kenya expressed its concern that its young citizens continue to be lured by such corrupt and ruthless agents to travel to Russia and unknowingly find themselves in the Russian military operation,” the statement from the Kenyan Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Ministry of Foreign & Diaspora Affairs reads.

The office said Kenya remains committed to strengthening bilateral relations with Russia, including negotiating a Bilateral Labour Agreement to provide legitimate employment opportunities for its citizens abroad.

Russian recruitment network promises fake jobs

The announcement follows a September intelligence-led operation in Nairobi, where police rescued 22 Kenyans awaiting processing to Russia. 

Authorities arrested Edward Kamau Gituku, accused of coordinating the recruitment, and seized materials showing victims had signed agreements to pay between $13,000 and $18,000 for visas, travel, and accommodation. 

His defense team claimed the company had already facilitated the travel of more than 1,000 Kenyans to Russia, according to local media reports.

Ukrainian forces captured Kenyan athlete Evans Kibet in September after he fought alongside Russian troops in Kharkiv Oblast. Kibet said a sports agent offered him a tourist trip to Saint Petersburg before pressuring him to sign documents in Russian that turned out to be military contracts. 

"I didn't know it was a military job. He told me to sign and took my passport and phone, and that is how everything went wrong," Kibet said in a video interview with Ukrainian forces. When he tried to refuse military service, recruiters told him he would either fight or be killed. 

Russia has recruited citizens from at least 21 countries - from Nepal to Cuba - through similar deceptive schemes, with BBC confirming 523 foreign mercenaries from 28 countries killed since the invasion began.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has received an official invitation to attend the G20 summit in South Africa, Russian Ambassador-at-Large Marat Berdyev said in an interview with state-owned media outlet RIA Novosti on June 19.

South Africa is a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and a signatory to the Rome Statute, meaning it is obliged to arrest Putin if he enters the country.

The ICC issued a warrant for the Russian leader's arrest in March 2023 over the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"Last week, we received an official invitation. This is an appeal from the head of state, the president of South Africa (Cyril Ramaphosa), to his colleagues," Berdyev said.

The summit is scheduled to take place in Johannesburg from Nov. 22 to 23. Berdyev noted that Russia's final decision on Putin's participation will be made closer to the date. In recent years, Russia has been represented at G20 summits by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Despite the warrant, South Africa continues to deepen political and military ties with Moscow. In 2023, the country conducted joint naval drills with Russia and China, and maintains its membership in the BRICS bloc alongside both nations.

In November 2024, Putin skipped the G20 summit in Brazil, another ICC member state, and sent Lavrov instead. Russia's G20 participation has continued uninterrupted despite its war against Ukraine.

In September 2024, Putin made a rare visit to Mongolia, which is also a signatory of the ICC, prompting criticism over the non-enforcement of the warrant.

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The Kyiv IndependentAnna Fratsyvir

Since 2021, Russian Wagner mercenaries have detained, tortured, and forcibly disappeared hundreds of civilians in secret prisons across Mali, according to a joint investigation published on June 12 by Forbidden Stories, France 24, Le Monde, and IStories.

The investigation found that mercenaries with Russia's Wagner Group, working alongside Malian government forces, had systematically abducted and detained civilians, holding them in prisons at former United Nations bases and military bases across Mali.

Drawing on eyewitness accounts and satellite imagery, the investigation identified six detention centers where Wagner held civilians between 2022 and 2024. The total number of Wagner detention centers in Mali is likely to be much higher.

Prisoners were subjected to systematic torture – including beatings, waterboarding, electric shocks, starvation, and confinement in sweltering metal containers.

The investigation was carried out as part of the Viktoriia project, in memory of Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, who was captured by Russian forces in 2023 while investigating the illegal detention of civilians in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. She was killed in Russian captivity in 2024.

The Russian mercenary group, known for its deployment in Ukraine and short-lived rebellion against the Kremlin in 2023, has a strong presence across the African continent, backing Russian business interests and Moscow-friendly regimes.

The mercenaries have been particularly active in Mali since late 2021 and have been accused of perpetrating war crimes. In December 2024, Human Rights Watch accused Wagner mercenaries and Malian government forces of deliberately killing 32 civilians.

The Wagner Group recently announced its withdrawal from Mali, where it fought alongside Malian government forces to fend off Islamist insurgents. Wagner has been active across the African continent for years and has been previously accused of committing human rights abuses.

Ukraine war latest: Ukraine strikes targets in Russia, including gunpowder plant

Key developments on June 11: * Ukrainian drones strike targets in Russia, including gunpowder plant, General Staff says * Zelensky urges ‘stronger’ EU sanctions on Russia, lower oil price cap * Ukraine repatriates bodies of 1,212 fallen soldiers * Ukraine’s SBU releases fresh video of Operation Spiderweb, teases ‘new surprises’ * NATO summit statement

The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk