Four South African men return home after being lured into the Russia-Ukraine war

Four of the South African men caught up in the Ukraine war after being recruited to Russia under false promises arrived back home on Wednesday, February 18, with more still expected to return.

Their arrival comes days after President Cyril Ramaphosa held talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on the return of South Africans caught up in the Ukraine war.

It was not immediately clear if the four were part of a group of 17 men the presidency previously said it was trying to bring home.

The SABC showed the men arriving at Johannesburg's main airport before they were escorted to a police holding area.

The presidency told AFP that the "process to secure the release of the men" was still ongoing.

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola said no timeline could be confirmed for the remaining men’s arrival, as the process was subject to Russia’s arrangements.

The men worked for private security companies in Russia rather than reporting directly to the Russian army, he told the broadcaster.

"They will allow them to come back when their contracts are cancelled there in Russia," he said, adding that they had agreed "that most of them will come bit by bit".

Locating the group "was a challenging process" and conditions remained difficult for those still on the front line, he said.

"The Russian government is only assisting us with their return and that really complicates the situation," Lamola said.

"The only thing we can say is that they were lured, indeed, under false pretences, and that is the subject of a police investigation."

A family member told the SABC that 11 other men - including one who had lost his leg - were travelling by bus from Ukraine to Russia and were expected back in South Africa at the weekend.

In November, Pretoria said it had received "distress calls" from 17 men who were trapped in the epicentre of the fighting in Ukraine's Donbas region after being tricked into joining mercenary groups.

South African law prohibits its citizens from fighting for a foreign country's army without government authorisation.

The war sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has drawn in mercenaries on both sides, including from several African countries.

An AFP investigation spoke to four Kenyans recently returned from Russia who said they were deceived by a Nairobi recruitment agency into travelling to Russia under false promises of well-paid jobs.

Former president Jacob Zuma, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, resigned from Parliament after claims she was involved in recruiting men to join Russian mercenaries.