More than 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine, according to an intelligence report presented to Kenya’s parliament, underscoring the scale of an alleged covert recruitment network targeting African nationals.
Kenya’s National Assembly Majority Leader, Kimani Ichung’wah, told MPs that “rogue recruitment agencies and individuals in Kenya" were continuing to send citizens to the conflict zone. He was presenting findings from an investigation conducted by the National Intelligence Service.
The figure marks a sharp rise from November, when Kenya’s foreign affairs ministry said more than 200 Kenyans had travelled to fight in the war.
According to the report, recruitment agencies have been targeting former military personnel, police officers and civilians aged between their mid-20s and 50s who are seeking employment opportunities abroad.
Recruits were allegedly promised monthly salaries of about 350,000 Kenyan shillings (around £2,000), bonuses ranging from 900,000 to 1.2 million shillings, and the prospect of Russian citizenship.
The intelligence report also accused the agencies of colluding with officials from several Kenyan government bodies, including the Directorate of Immigration Services, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and its Anti-Narcotics Unit, and the National Employment Authority, to avoid interception at Nairobi’s international airport.
It further alleged that the agencies worked with staff at the Russian embassy in Kenya and the Kenyan embassy in Moscow to secure Russian visitor visas for the recruits.
In response, the Embassy of Russia in Kenya denied any involvement in recruiting Kenyan nationals to fight in Ukraine, calling the claims part of a “dangerous and misleading propaganda campaign."
“The government authorities of Russia have never engaged in illegal recruitment of Kenyan citizens in the armed forces of the Russian Federation," the embassy said in a statement posted on X.
The report noted that due to tighter airport screening in Kenya, recruits have begun travelling through neighbouring countries, including Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Africa.
Source: World News in news18.com, World Latest News, World News
