Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Wagner group is recruiting prisoners in Africa to fight&die for them in Ukraine.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/wagner-group-accused-of-recruiting-prisoners-from-the-central-african-republic-for-russias-war-in-ukraine?ref=homeABUJA, Nigeria—Russia’s infamous Wagner Group is freeing hardened rebels held in jail cells in the Central African Republic and deploying them overseas, including in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, two senior military officers in CAR told The Daily Beast.
According to the sources in CAR, where armed rebels have controlled large parts of the country for about a decade, dozens of men held in military and police custody for crimes such as rape and murder are now being recruited into Wagner’s local wing, which includes hundreds of fighters commonly referred to as “Black Russians.” Many of the recruits, the officers said, are rebels the military consider to be terrorists because of their unlawful use of violence and intimidation against civilians and armed forces in pursuit of political aims.
“Since October, they [Wagner paramilitaries] have been walking into military and police cells and releasing rebels, including those held for attacking Bokolobo village [in southern CAR] in May and for raping women and girls,” an officer who works at the military headquarters in CAR’s capital, Bangui, told The Daily Beast. “Nobody can stop them because the government has given them so much power to act the way they want.”
Another military officer told The Daily Beast that rebels held for attacking and killing CAR soldiers during an assault on a military camp in the southeastern town of Bakouma town in April have also been freed by Russian mercenaries. The officer said Wagner paramilitaries told military officials that the released rebels would be working for the group overseas.
...
According to another former UPC rebel who later became a Black Russian, Little Bouba was arrested around June after being accused of helping mastermind attacks on CAR forces in the east of the country in February.
“He was accused of butchering soldiers,” said Hassan, who—like Ali—was recruited by the Wagner Group after quitting UPC last December. “Now, he's a Black Russian because they need him to fight in Ukraine.”
...
Ali and Hassan left the Black Russians early in November after they stopped receiving payment from Wagner. Dozens of their colleagues, particularly those recruited from prison, allegedly began to disappear in recent months. The two believe that their missing former colleagues—about 50 in number—are fighting for Russia in Ukraine, but are convinced they have been abandoned.
“They [Wagner] are just taking people away without even informing their families,” said Ali. “If things go wrong, no one would know what happened to them.”
According to the sources in CAR, where armed rebels have controlled large parts of the country for about a decade, dozens of men held in military and police custody for crimes such as rape and murder are now being recruited into Wagner’s local wing, which includes hundreds of fighters commonly referred to as “Black Russians.” Many of the recruits, the officers said, are rebels the military consider to be terrorists because of their unlawful use of violence and intimidation against civilians and armed forces in pursuit of political aims.
“Since October, they [Wagner paramilitaries] have been walking into military and police cells and releasing rebels, including those held for attacking Bokolobo village [in southern CAR] in May and for raping women and girls,” an officer who works at the military headquarters in CAR’s capital, Bangui, told The Daily Beast. “Nobody can stop them because the government has given them so much power to act the way they want.”
Another military officer told The Daily Beast that rebels held for attacking and killing CAR soldiers during an assault on a military camp in the southeastern town of Bakouma town in April have also been freed by Russian mercenaries. The officer said Wagner paramilitaries told military officials that the released rebels would be working for the group overseas.
...
According to another former UPC rebel who later became a Black Russian, Little Bouba was arrested around June after being accused of helping mastermind attacks on CAR forces in the east of the country in February.
“He was accused of butchering soldiers,” said Hassan, who—like Ali—was recruited by the Wagner Group after quitting UPC last December. “Now, he's a Black Russian because they need him to fight in Ukraine.”
...
Ali and Hassan left the Black Russians early in November after they stopped receiving payment from Wagner. Dozens of their colleagues, particularly those recruited from prison, allegedly began to disappear in recent months. The two believe that their missing former colleagues—about 50 in number—are fighting for Russia in Ukraine, but are convinced they have been abandoned.
“They [Wagner] are just taking people away without even informing their families,” said Ali. “If things go wrong, no one would know what happened to them.”
3 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
