African Nations Report Citizens Deceived Into Fighting in Ukraine War

Two South Africans have died fighting in Ukraine while a Kenyan court has charged a recruitment company director with trafficking 25 Kenyans to Russia under false pretenses. Ukrainian officials estimate over 1,700 Africans are currently fighting for Russia after being deceived about the true nature of their deployment.

Officials in South Africa and Kenya are grappling with evidence that their citizens are being lured into combat roles in the Ukraine conflict, with deadly consequences emerging on Thursday.

Pretoria confirmed that two South African nationals lost their lives while fighting on Ukrainian battlefields. These fatalities are distinct from a separate group of 17 South Africans who were deceived into military service for Russia and have since been brought home, according to the nation’s foreign affairs department.

Details about when and how these two individuals perished were not disclosed by officials.

Moscow has rejected allegations that it unlawfully recruits African nationals for combat in Ukraine.

“The government continues to investigate the networks involved in these recruitment efforts to ensure that those who exploit vulnerable citizens face the full might of the law,” South Africa’s foreign ministry said.

Meanwhile, in Kenya’s capital, legal proceedings began against Festus Arasa Omwamba, who heads a recruitment firm accused of human trafficking. Nairobi prosecutors allege he transported 25 Kenyan victims to “Russia for the purpose of exploitation by means of deception,” according to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Authorities rescued 22 of these individuals from a residential facility in Athi River, located in Machakos County near Nairobi, last September before their planned departure to Russia, prosecutors stated.

The remaining three had already traveled to Russia and reportedly ended up in active combat zones during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, later returning with battle wounds, the prosecutor’s office revealed. Omwamba has entered a not guilty plea to all charges.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated Wednesday that more than 1,700 African fighters are currently serving with Russian forces in Ukraine, claiming Moscow uses fraudulent tactics to recruit them.

A recent intelligence report from Kenya’s National Intelligence Service revealed that recruitment organizations worked with corrupt Kenyan airport personnel, immigration officers, other government officials, and staff from both the Russian Embassy in Nairobi and Kenya’s Embassy in Moscow to arrange travel for fighters. The report estimates over 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited.

Russia’s diplomatic mission in Nairobi has disputed claims of illegal recruitment of Kenyan fighters for Ukraine, while acknowledging that foreign nationals may voluntarily enlist in Russian military forces.

The court has ordered Omwamba to remain in police detention while awaiting a bail determination, prosecutors announced.

Kenya’s foreign ministry reports that 27 Kenyan nationals have been rescued after becoming stranded in Russia. Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi has announced plans to travel to Russia in March for discussions on this matter.