The surviving members of a group of 14 men from Ghana who were lured into the Russian military to fight against Ukraine have appealed for help from Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast, Ghanaian news outlet TV3 reported on Sept. 19.
Russia continues to try to fill the ranks of its army with foreigners and migrant workers to avoid another round of domestic mobilization as losses from its ongoing war in Ukraine mount.
According to TV3, the men arrived in Russia on Aug. 6 and were taken to Kostroma, a city in western Russia located 300 kilometers (186 miles) northeast of Moscow.
Another man from Ghana was reportedly responsible for luring the group, promising them well-paid jobs in Russia. The men said they paid for their own plane tickets and visas and were told they would get a job working in security, but would first undergo training from the military.
The men said they then signed a contract in Russian, a language none of the men speak, and their passports were later confiscated.
Three men from the group told TV3 that they are being held against their will in Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast and that they believe they may be the only surviving members of the original group of 14.
Other members of the group were allegedly taken away to fight and one man escaped, but his whereabouts are unknown.
"We are presently in Ukraine...we have no fighting experience," one man told TV3. "We are pleading, we want to return home."
The families of the 14 men have appealed to the Ghanian Police Headquarters for help, TV3 journalist Godwin Asediba posted on X on Sept. 20.
Similar cases of foreigners being lured into the Russian army have been reported in India, Egypt, Nepal, and Cuba, despite efforts from these countries to clamp down on the smuggling rings and recruitment schemes that drive men to Russia.
Bloomberg reported in June that Russia was coercing African students and migrants to fight by threatening to take away their visas if they did not agree to join the military.
Indian media reported on Sept. 12 that 45 Indians tricked into joining the Russian military fighting in Ukraine have been released after the Indian government intervened, and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July.
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