Ukraine Detains Four Kenyans Accused of Fighting for Russian Forces

Ukrainian authorities have confirmed the capture of four Kenyan nationals who were reportedly serving in Russian military units amid ongoing fighting in eastern Ukraine.

The individuals, Peter Njenga, Felix Mutahi, Martin Munene, and a man identified only as Evans, are among several foreign nationals detained by Ukrainian forces. According to officials, they were apprehended near the frontline and are now in Ukrainian custody.

A video released by Ukraine’s 57th Motorised Infantry Brigade features Evans describing how he ended up in military service. He claims he travelled to Russia as a tourist, where he was offered a job by his host. He says he was given documents in Russian, which he signed without understanding, after which his passport and phone were taken. He was then taken to a training camp.

“I later found myself inside a military camp,” Evans says in the video. “When I asked them what I was doing inside a training camp, they informed me that I had signed for the job and I had to take it.”

Evans alleges that all instructions during training were in Russian, a language he does not speak. He was issued a rifle and placed in a combat unit, but eventually escaped and surrendered to Ukrainian forces near Vovchansk, in Kharkiv Oblast.

The Kenyan government has not yet issued a formal statement. Requests for comment from Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura and Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei have not been answered.

During a recent media visit to a prisoners-of-war facility in Kyiv, several African detainees, from Ghana, Somalia, Egypt, and Sierra Leone, described similar experiences. Many said they were promised jobs or scholarships in Russia, only to be conscripted into military service after their arrival.

Training periods reportedly lasted between one and three months before they were sent to the front lines. The issue has previously come to light following the deaths of Ugandan student Habib Bosco Magara in 2023 and Zambian national Lemekani Nathan Nyirenda in 2022. 

Both were in Russia on academic visas before being killed in combat. Russian authorities have not publicly addressed allegations that foreign students and job seekers are being recruited into its military.