'We are just meat.' Captured Egyptian national tells his story of how he became an occupier in Ukraine
Illustrative photo: Capture of occupiers (Getty Images)
The Ukrainian army has captured an Egyptian national who joined the Russian occupation forces. According to the prisoner, he signed a contract with the Russian army because his visa was about to expire, according to the Donbas Realii project.
'No water, nothing at all.' How and where he was captured
The Egyptian was captured near Kurakhove town, south of Pokrovsk, an area where Russia conducts infantry assaults and attacks with tanks and IFVs. Ukrainian defenders have often spotted mercenaries from other countries in this area.
“There are Egyptians there now. We captured them last time. There were also some Africans, I don’t know which country they were from. We provoked him (the Egyptian - Ed.) to surrender,” a Ukrainian soldier said.
The soldier added that foreign mercenaries fighting for the Russian occupiers are so frightened that they "fear their commanders more than death." Harsh coercion is used against them.
The media managed to speak with one of the mercenaries. The 25-year-old Egyptian citizen was captured near the village of Peremoha, close to Maryinka.
The prisoner said their mission was to reach a certain point, secure it, and hold the position. After sitting under fire for two days, the group decided to surrender.
“There was no communication, no water, nothing at all. So we surrendered. We said: 'Guys, we’re giving up.' But nobody on the other side responded. A Ukrainian guy said: ‘When you see the drone, follow it.’ So we did,” said the foreign mercenary.
The Ukrainian military from the 33rd Brigade recorded the retreat of the enemy following a Ukrainian drone on video. Two Russian soldiers were killed on the same road by Russian artillery fire.
Photo: Soldiers of the 33rd Brigade filmed the moment when the enemies surrendered (screenshot from the Donbas Realii's video)
Who turned out to be the mercenary and how he went to kill Ukrainians
The Egyptian citizen who surrendered to the Ukrainian Armed Forces shared his story of how he ended up fighting in Ukraine. He had studied at a linguistic department in a Russian university, learning English and Russian. He signed a contract with the occupation forces on March 3 of this year.
“I am an Egyptian citizen. I signed the contract this year because my visa was expiring. I completed my third year of studies, with only one year left. I read online that if you're not a Russian citizen, they can’t send you to the Special Military Operation,” he said.
However, it turned out they sent him to the front.
The Egyptian insisted that he refused to go to war in Ukraine, and he supposedly already had Russian citizenship, which was issued without him knowing it. He claimed to be "shocked because he hadn’t even submitted the documents to the Ministry of Internal Affairs." Allegedly, the papers were submitted on his behalf to send him to fight against Ukrainians.
He recalled how the Russians locked him in a room resembling a prison cell to prevent him from fleeing. Then they put him in a KAMAZ truck, drove him to a training ground, and sent him with an assault group to the frontline near Kurakhove town. He described the conditions there as horrific.
“Honestly, we are just cannon fodder. If you don’t want to go on a mission, they can shoot you or throw you in a pit. Then they lock you up there, and you can’t see anything. I know a guy who sat in a pit for three weeks,” he said.
Photo: The prisoner claims that he was granted Russian citizenship without him knowing it to send him to war to kill Ukrainians (screenshot from the Donbas Realii's video).
Russia deploys foreign mercenaries for assaults
Russia uses mercenaries to wage war against Ukraine and often sends them on assault missions. According to the National Resistance Center of Ukraine, new groups of mercenaries are frequently noticed in temporarily occupied territories, brought in by the Kremlin. There are fighters from Cuba and Nepal among them.
Earlier this year, India requested the early return of its citizens who were working in supporting roles within the Russian army.
Petro Yatsenko, a representative of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, said Russia is experiencing a shortage of its mobilization resources, which is why it increasingly recruits foreigners to participate in the war. There are citizens from Cuba, Nepal, African, and Latin American countries among the prisoners captured by Ukraine.
More details on what African mercenaries are doing on Ukrainian land, how they end up in captivity, and what they think of the Russians can be found in the report by RBC-Ukraine.
