By Enyichukwu Enemanna
At least four men suspected to have been recruited to fight in Moscow against Ukraine have been arrested en route to Russia, South African police say.
The men were stopped at the boarding gate in Johannesburg on Friday, police said, weeks after reports emerged that another 17 South African men were stranded in Ukraine after being lured into joining mercenary forces with the promise of lucrative contracts.
South African law makes it illegal for citizens to provide military assistance to foreign governments or participate in foreign armies without due authorisation.
“The arrests followed a tip-off from (Johannesburg airport police) regarding four males who were en route to Russia via the United Arab Emirates,” the elite Hawks police unit said in a statement on Saturday.
“A preliminary investigation revealed that a South African female had allegedly been facilitating the travel and recruitment of these individuals into the Russian Federation military,” it added.
The Hawks said the four suspects are expected to appear in court on Monday over alleged violation of the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered an investigation into how the 17 men ended up fighting in Ukraine, amid ongoing efforts to bring them home.
This comes barely a day after the resignation of Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, a daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma from the parliament in connection with the allegation.
She was accused by her half-sister of being involved in luring those men to Russia under false pretences, an allegations she denies. In an affidavit, she said she thought the men were going to Russia to acquire legitimate military training.
Police have also said they will launch an investigation into allegations against her.
