By: Abdoulie John
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine grinds into its fifth year, human rights campaigners meeting in Banjul have accused Moscow of systematically luring young Africans with false promises of jobs and education before forcing them into combat, describing the practice as a form of human trafficking.
The allegations were made public on Tuesday during a side-event at the 87th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center in Bijilo.
The event centered on a damning April 2026 report titled “Combatants, Mercenaries or Victims of Human Trafficking? The Plight of African Fighters in Russia’s War Against Ukraine”, co-sponsored by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Truth Hounds, and the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law.
Ilya Nuzov, Head of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia Desk at FIDH, said recruiters deliberately employ a strategy of deception from the outset.
“Besides this enticement, there is a system of deceit that operates on every step of the recruitment process,” Nuzov stated. “Recruiting sergeants often offer civilian jobs to young Africans… they don’t hesitate to lie about the nature of the employment.”
Once inside Russia, many recruits face coercion. “Once people get inside Russia, they are sometimes physically forced to sign contracts,” he added. Africans are frequently kept in the dark about the terms and conditions they are endorsing.
Maria Tomak of Truth Hounds highlighted the human cost, noting that Kenya is one of the few African nations actively providing information about its nationals trapped in the conflict. She shared the story of a Kenyan athlete who traveled to Russia for a sporting event, only to find himself in a war zone.
“He ended up blindly signing a contract he could not understand,” Tomak said. The athlete was immediately deployed to an Assault Battalion and later captured by Ukrainian forces. His story and those of other Kenyan victims have circulated widely on social media.
The report reveals that since February 2022, Russia has recruited at least 27,000 foreign nationals from more than 130 countries through a combination of volunteer enlistment and “predatory recruitment” of socio-economically vulnerable individuals into the Russian Armed Forces on temporary contracts.
Ukrainian authorities have captured fighters from several African nations, including Kenya, Cameroon, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Togo, Ghana, Senegal, Uganda, and Burundi. Credible reports also indicate active participation by nationals from South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, the Central African Republic, Nigeria, The Gambia, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire.
Campaigners warn that the internationalized recruitment system exploits vulnerable youths, raising serious questions about human trafficking and international law violations in the context of the armed conflict.
The ACHPR session continues in Bijilo, with participants calling for greater intervention by African governments to protect their citizens from such exploitation.
