News24 | UPDATE | Two South Africans recruited to Russia war effort have died – Lamola

Two South Africans who were recruited to travel to Russia as part of foreign employment schemes associated with the ongoing war in Ukraine have died.

• International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola said two South African men had died in the war in Ukraine.
• He declined to name the men but said their remains were in the process of being repatriated for burial by their families.
• The two men, Lamola said, were not among the 17 men who were recruited to the war by MK Party members but were recruited in a separate process.

Two South Africans who were recruited to travel to Russia as part of foreign employment schemes associated with the ongoing war in Ukraine have died.

This was confirmed by Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola on Thursday in Durban.

Lamola said government had been made aware of the deaths of the two South Africans during its ongoing efforts to secure the return of other countrymen who had travelled to the conflict zone.

However, he stressed that the two dead men were not part of the group of 17 men linked to the MK Party (MKP) recruitment process, which has been the focus of public attention in recent months.

“The ones we are aware of are two that we have been made aware of that have died (sic), but they were not part of the 17. So that should be very clear… it should not be confused as part of the 17. They were not part of the 17. But it’s part of another recruitment drive or another scheme that took them there,” said Lamola.

READ | Conned into combat: From war zone to home, families reunite with men back from Ukraine

Lamola did not say how the two men died but said they were combatants in the conflict. He declined to name the two and said processes were under way to repatriate their remains for their families to bury them.

Lamola explained that the government had since discovered that there were other South Africans who had travelled to Russia through separate recruitment schemes beyond the widely reported group, the existence of which was first reported by News24.

He said cooperation between the South African government and foreign authorities had resulted in most South Africans being removed from the front lines, with processes now focused on facilitating their return home.

He warned that those who participated in the recruitment schemes could face legal consequences upon their return to South Africa.

Lamola said:

Lamola also urged South Africans to verify foreign job offers with South African diplomatic missions abroad, warning that fraudulent recruitment schemes often target vulnerable job seekers.

He added that most of the 17 South Africans recruited through processes involving the MK Party had now returned home. Two men were still unable to travel due to medical reasons and remain in hospital.

Lamola said they should be travelling back home in a few weeks once doctors in Russia have declared them fit to travel.

In a statement on Thursday, International Relations and Cooperation department spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said Lamola had formally met the families of the recently repatriated men who were among the group of 17.

Members of the group and their families have told News24 consistently over the past few months that they were lured to Russia believing that they were to undergo training as bodyguards for the MK Party, but were then duped into signing contracts written in Russian which they did not understand, and which compelled them to fight in the war on Ukraine.

“Minister Lamola expressed the government’s relief regarding the safe return of these citizens, acknowledging the immense distress their families have endured. While the specific details surrounding their recruitment remain under active investigation, the Minister emphasised that this government intervention was an exceptional measure taken to preserve South African lives,” the statement said.

“The safety of our citizens abroad is a priority, but we must be clear: the circumstances that led to this situation were highly irregular.”

READ | Conned into combat: 4 return home, but SA men still trapped in war zone plead for help

Phiri said the Ministry was “deeply concerned by the suspicious circumstances and predatory recruitment tactics used to lure citizens into danger”.

“If a job offer abroad sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” Lamola said in the statement.

“South Africans are urged to exercise extreme due diligence when pursuing international employment, particularly those involving ‘security’, ‘logistics’, or ‘technical support’ in high-risk regions,” Phiri added.

“The government continues to investigate the networks involved in these recruitment efforts to ensure that those who exploit vulnerable citizens face the full might of the law.”