Articles: Africa

Kenyan Was Offered a Driving Job in Russia. He Ended Up on Ukraine’s Front Line. He Got Out by Pretending to Be Mad. Continue reading →

On July 18, 2026, Botswana’s Ministry of International Relations published an official press statement warning citizens against deceptive recruitment schemes that funnel Batswana into combat in Russia’s war against Ukraine. The statement is Botswana’s starkest public acknowledgment yet of the crisis – and it is not the government’s first. Continue reading →

Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence has published another radio intercept from the front in Donetsk region – and it captures, in the commander’s own words, how Russian forces use African and Arab recruits as expendable assault troops.
The recording involves an officer of Russia’s 1194th motorized rifle regiment. In it, he issues a combat order for a grove assault in the Donbas kill zone. The tactic is explicit: African fighters go in first to breach the position and absorb fire. Arab fighters follow behind, with the Russian officer entering last. Continue reading →

An athlete. A security guard. A cook. A driver. Four Kenyans recruited into Russia’s war in Ukraine through different lies, by different people, at different times – all of them ending up in the same place: the front lines.
A documentary by Kenyan outlet Tuko, produced by journalist King Wangeshi, follows the families left behind and the one man who made it out alive. It puts names and faces to a crisis that the Kenyan government has acknowledged at scale: according to official figures, at least 200 Kenyans have joined Russian forces through deceptive recruitment. The government has described the situation as “extremely worrying.” Continue reading →