Source: Africa Publicity
South Africa’s government has launched an investigation into how 17 of its citizens ended up fighting in Ukraine, after the men contacted authorities asking for assistance to return home from the conflict zone.
According to an official statement issued on Thursday, the individuals — aged between 20 and 39 — were recruited under false job promises and are currently stranded in the Donbas region, one of the most heavily militarised areas in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Authorities did not disclose which side of the conflict the men had been deployed to.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has directed security agencies to establish how the recruitment network operated, who funded the travel arrangements, and whether any criminal syndicates or online recruiters were involved in targeting South African youth.
