South African authorities have launched a probe into claims that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former President Jacob Zuma, played a role in sending a group of South African men into Russia’s war against Ukraine under false pretenses.
Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe confirmed that investigators are assessing an affidavit submitted by Zuma-Sambudla’s sister, Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma-Mncube. In her filing, she recounts how the men were allegedly assured they would receive high-level security training once they arrived in Russia. Information about the two other individuals said to have assisted in the recruitment remains unclear.
The affidavit states that the men were handed to a Russian mercenary group and forced onto the battlefield. It further claims that eight of the seventeen recruits are related to the two sisters.
Mathe told reporters on Sunday that potential charges “are still to be determined through a thorough investigation.”
As pressure mounts, South Africa’s foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, said on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Johannesburg that officials are working with both Russia and Ukraine to bring the men home. “The police must investigate and whoever is involved in this must be arrested,” Lamola said. He noted that efforts to extract the men are complicated, adding: “It is not an easy situation because they are in the front lines of this battle, but we are hopeful that there will be breakthroughs.”
Earlier in the month, South Africa disclosed that the men, aged 20 to 39, had reached out asking for help, revealing they were stuck in the conflict zone in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Officials said the group had joined mercenary lines after being promised lucrative work opportunities.
Russia has been accused before of recruiting foreign fighters by disguising combat roles as job opportunities, and of drawing women from South Africa and other African nations into Russian drone factories through misleading social media campaigns.
South African law prohibits citizens from providing military assistance to foreign governments or taking part in foreign armed forces unless specifically cleared by the state.
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Zuma-Sambudla, a member of parliament for the MK Party founded by her father in 2023 after his break with the African National Congress, is already facing trial in a separate case linked to the violent unrest of 2021. Prosecutors say she helped stir the riots through online posts.
Neither Zuma-Sambudla nor the MK Party issued a response to questions about the allegations, according to a report by the AP.
