Nine foreign nationals suspected of attempting to travel from South Africa to Russia to fight in the war between Russia and Ukraine have been arrested, police said Monday.
Police arrested the suspects, who are aged between 20 and 26, late Sunday night at OR Tambo Airport and at a nearby hotel in Johannesburg’s Bruma neighbourhood, according to Col Katlego Mogale. The suspects were preparing to board flights to Russia when officers intervened after an intelligence-led investigation involving Interpol and local and international law enforcement agencies, police said.
They did not identify the suspects’ nationalities or which side they allegedly planned to join. The nine are expected to appear before the Kempton Park Magistrates’ Court on charges relating to alleged violations of South Africa’s Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act. The law prohibits mercenary activity and regulates military assistance to parties in foreign conflicts, including recruitment and training.
Its provisions also apply to foreign nationals acting within South Africa. Police did not give a date for the accused to appear in court. The arrests come amid growing concern that Africans are being recruited to fight for Russia, sometimes through promises of civilian jobs that lead to the battlefield. An investigation by a nonprofit data journalism and technology organisation, Code for Africa, cited by the Institute for Security Studies, identified 289 websites, domains and social media profiles used to lure recruits through false advertising and promises of generous benefits.
South Africa has helped repatriate several citizens, it said, who were lured into the conflict. Police investigated allegations that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, a daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma, helped lure 17 South African men to fight for Russia under promises of security training. She denied wrongdoing and resigned from Parliament in November 2025 following the allegations.