More than 1,000 Kenyans lured to fight for Russia in Ukraine war, report says

The Guardian - World NewsCenter-LeftEN 3 min read 100% complete by Carlos Mureithi in Nairobi and Rachel Savage in JohannesburgFebruary 19, 2026 at 03:39 PM

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A Kenyan intelligence report presented to parliament revealed that over 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight for Russia in the Ukraine war. Recruitment agencies are allegedly targeting unemployed Kenyans, including former military and police, promising high salaries and Russian citizenship. The report accuses these agencies of colluding with Kenyan and Russian embassy staff, as well as officials from various Kenyan government agencies, to facilitate travel and avoid detection. The agencies entice Kenyans with monthly salaries of about 350,000 shillings (£2,000), bonuses of between 900,000 shillings and 1.2m shillings and eventual Russian citizenship. Russia's embassy in Kenya has denied involvement in the recruitment, dismissing the accusations as propaganda.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Directorate of Immigration Services 40% Kenyan Embassy in Moscow 40% National Employment Authority 40% Directorate of Criminal Investigations 40% Andrii Sybiha 50% National Intelligence Service 60% Russian Embassy in Kenya ×260% Kimani Ichung'wah ×370% Ukraine ×570% Russia ×780% Kenya ×1090%

Keywords

russia-ukraine war 100% kenyan recruits 90% recruitment agencies 80% foreign fighters 70% human trafficking 60% russian embassy 50% national intelligence service 50% job opportunities 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.40

Source Transparency

Source

The Guardian - World News

Political Lean

Center-Left (-0.40)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Kenya

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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russia-ukraine war kenyan recruits recruitment agencies foreign fighters human trafficking russian embassy national intelligence service job opportunities

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