A South African man, his eyes darkened from sleepless nights, told Sky News that his older brother was lured to fight for Russia on the front lines in Ukraine's Donbas region.
"For them, it's a suicide mission because they've never trained for the military. They have no military training – they have no military experience," says Bongani, whose name has been changed for his safety.
In the hidden back garden of a modest hotel in KwaZulu-Natal province, he continued: "They have no experience in any war. They are just bodyguards who want to find a job and provide for their families. That's it."
Bongani says his brother traveled to Russia on a flight via Dubai after being told he would receive bodyguard training along with at least 16 other men from South Africa. After signing a contract in Russian, their fate was sealed.
"The problems started when they were transferred from Russia to Ukraine and asked: 'Guys – where are we going now because we are here for training,'" reports the Telegraph.
"And then the Russians said: 'Training for what? We don't know anything about training – what we know is that you signed the contract. You are under our command now – under the Russian military,'" he added.
Sky News has seen harrowing video messages from South African men describing being stranded and deployed on the frontline in Ukraine.
In a video, a man in military uniform details the moment they signed their contracts. He claims that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, the daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma, encouraged them to sign for their lives.
“We refused to sign the contract forms because it was written in Russian, which we didn’t understand. We asked them for a translator – someone who could translate the language. They said there was no network,” he says in fluent English. Then Duduzile came with a guy named Xhosa. She said we should sign the contract because it’s the same thing they did. Duduzile said she’s doing the same course we’re doing, the same training, and that unfortunately she won’t be with us because she’s training somewhere else. Yes, we agreed. We signed the forms because we trust the lady, Duduzile,” he added.
Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla is accused of trafficking South African men – including eight of her relatives – for mercenary recruitment by her half-sister Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma-Mncube, who has laid police charges against her.
She denies the allegations and says she was the victim of fraud, misrepresentation and manipulation.
The South African Police Service says it is currently investigating the allegations. Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla has resigned as a member of parliament and did not respond to our request for comment.
Five hours away in Johannesburg's Gauteng province, Sky News saw another case of alleged mercenary recruitment unfold in a South African court.
Five suspects were escorted into a packed courtroom in Kempton Park after they were arrested en route to Johannesburg's Oliver R Tambo Airport following a tip-off to police that they were suspected of travelling to Russia via the United Arab Emirates.
Source of information @Telegrafi: Read more at:the world today www.botasot.al
