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The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation confirmed that its multidisciplinary team had detained the group at OR Tambo International Airport and a hotel in Bruma east of Johannesburg. The men aged between 20 and 26 were not South African residents and their nationalities have not been released. Colonel Katlego Mogale the Hawks spokesperson said the arrests followed intelligence that the suspects were preparing to leave the country.
Mogale added that the operation involved Interpol SAPS Crime Intelligence the Gauteng Provincial Tracking Team and several other local and international agencies. The nine foreigners caught allegedly trying to leave South Africa to fight in Ukraine had not yet boarded any flights when the team intervened according to the statement. Officials have declined to specify which side of the conflict the group allegedly intended to support or name any facilitators.
The suspects are expected to face charges under the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act 15 of 1998. The legislation prohibits any form of unauthorised military assistance or mercenary activity conducted from South African territory without explicit government permission. Convictions under the act can result in substantial fines and prison terms.
The group is scheduled to appear before the Kempton Park Magistrates Court within the coming days. Acting Gauteng head of the Hawks Brigadier Paulina Sekgobela praised the coordinated efforts that produced the successful intervention. The directorate indicated that the investigation remains active and further details may be released in court.
Ukrainian intelligence reported in October 2026 that at least 5 451 citizens from 43 African states had signed contracts with the Russian armed forces. An Inpact investigation published earlier that year had already documented 1 417 African recruits between 2023 and 2025 with 316 recorded deaths. Ghana has separately stated that 55 of its nationals were killed in the conflict while 272 were lured into service since 2022 according to official government figures.
South Africa has encountered repeated recruitment attempts linked to the same war. Reuters reported that Pretoria secured the return of 17 citizens in early 2026 after the men claimed they had been tricked with promises of security work only to be deployed to the Donbas region. In December 2025 the Hawks arrested five people including a journalist on similar recruitment-related charges the Mail and Guardian noted in its coverage of the latest operation.
