More Kenyans who have been fighting for Russia have been killed in Ukraine. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency which is known as the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine has identified a number of those who have been killed.
They include Eric Mwangi Nyambura who was 23 years old. Others are Joseph Kamau Wanjiru, Joel Ngure Karithi, and Ronald Kipkuri Kibet.
According to intelligence reports, these young men are said to have traveled to Russia with Mwangi in October 2025. They signed contracts in Russia and were taken through brief military training before the were sent to the frontlines.
Ukraine’s intelligence says that Mwangi Nyambura was initially designated as a radio operator. He was later on moved to an assault unit where he was killed while fighting for Russia.
These Kenyans were identified through a line dubbed ‘I want to Leave’ that is being operated by Ukraine. The line targets foreign recruits fighting for Russia who want to surrender and return home.
More Kenyans killed in Ukraine
Earlier this year, Ukraine, which was unjustly invaded by Russia in 2022, recovered the bodies of Kenyan men in the Donetsk region. Among them were bodies of 39-year-old Ombwori Denis Bagaka and 35-year-old Wahome Simon Gititu. At the time, reports released by the Ukraine military’s Defense Intelligence of Ukraine unit said that these Kenyans had been working for security companies in Qatar from where they were lured into joining the Russia army in its aggression against Ukraine.
For Russia, the young Kenyan men they are recruiting, and many others from different African countries, are disposable. Their vulnerability amd desperation to make money openly evident, the Russians send them to war as their frontline.
These Kenyans are the first to receive fire when things get thick. They act as a protective vest for the Russian forces.
In one video that was recently circulated online, Russian forces were seen recording Kenyan men in the warzones and mocking them in Russian languages, labeling them as fools who would die in the war.
In one video that was shared by Ukraine intelligence, a Russia soldier was captured on video bragging how Russia had so many disposable recruits from Africa.
“Behind their backs, he comments in Russian that they are essentially disposable cannon fodder,” Ukraine’s intelligence interpreted the message.
The Russian soldier went on to say:
“Look how many disposables are here. They’re even singing. So cheerful. No problem – once they’re sent to the assault, they’ll sing a different tune.”
According to a report by the the National Intelligence Service (NIS), Kenyan men who were recruited to go fight for Russia started off by leaving the country on tourist visas. They would travel via Istanbul, Turkey, and via the United Arab Emirates.
The reports states that the government started rejecting travels to Russia via the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), these recruits started using alternative routes that include travel to Russia via Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Africa.
READ MORE: Blood money Russia is using to lure Kenyan men into war with Ukraine
The recruits are being hired through recruitment agencies that are based in Kenya. The report states that these recruitment agencies have also been colluding with staff at the JKIA, immigration officials, rogue officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, Anti-Narcotics and National Employment Authority officers in order for the recruits to be allowed safe passage via the JKIA.
There’s also the allure of monetary rewards by Russia. It is claimed that men who are recruited into the Russian army as mercenaries are paid an initial payment of approximately Sh4.4 million within the first three weeks after signing the contract. They are then paid a monthly compensation of Sh540,000.
In the event a recruit suffers injury in the war, he is paid Sh5 million while compensation for those killed in Ukraine has been set at Sh24 million.
A related report by the NIS that was presented to parliament placed the monthly salaries that are promised to these recruits at Sh350,000 with bonuses of Sh900,000. It is however not clear if the recruits ever receive these monies.
