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Over 1,000 recruited to fight for Russia
Bangkok Post
|February 21, 2026
More than 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight on Russia’s side in the war in Ukraine, according to a Kenyan intelligence report presented to lawmakers this week, five times more than authorities had previously estimated.
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Relatives of Kenyans believed to be fighting for Russia in Ukraine hold photographs of their kin during a demonstration in downtown Nairobi on Thursday.
(REUTERS)
The Russian Embassy in Nairobi denied on Thursday that Moscow was involved in illegally recruiting Kenyans to fight in Ukraine, though it said foreign citizens could voluntarily join its armed forces.
Reading the report of Kenya's National Intelligence Service to lawmakers on Wednesday, Parliament Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah described a network of rogue state officials it said had colluded with human trafficking syndicates to recruit Kenyans to fight in Russia's war in Ukraine.
The recruiters targeted former soldiers and police officers, as well as unemployed people, with promises that they would earn some 350,000 shillings (84,733 baht) per month and get bonuses of up to 1.2 million shillings.
This story is from the February 21, 2026 edition of Bangkok Post.
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