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It’s all about this

Lemekhani Nyirenda, 23, originally from Zambia in southern Africa, studied nuclear engineering at a university in Moscow, according to the African edition of news portal Business Insider. Now Nyirenda is dead. According to the Zambian government, the young man was killed in September in fighting in Ukraine – where he was deployed for the Russian army. The case raises new questions about Russia’s recruitment strategy.

Why did Nyirenda fight in Ukraine?

That’s not entirely clear. But what is known for sure is that Nyirenda was convicted in Moscow and was in prison. According to the BBC, the student has been behind bars for drug trafficking for more than nine years.

On November 9, the Zambian Foreign Ministry was informed by Russian authorities that Nyirenda had died – on the Russian front in the war against Ukraine. This raises many questions: in the past, there have been several reports of Russia recruiting prisoners from prisons and sending them to war. If they survive their deployment at the front, they will receive a criminal amnesty. The infamous Wagner Group also caused a stir with this questionable recruitment process:

However, the case of Lemekhani Nyirenda opens a new chapter in Russia’s recruitment strategy. Because his commitment to the front indicates that Russia may even be mobilizing foreign prisoners for its own purposes. Whether Nyirenda was forced to go to war or whether he did so voluntarily – with a view to a reduced sentence – is not clear.

That’s what Nyirenda’s family says

Muzang’alu Nyirenda told the BBC that the family was plagued by great uncertainty and felt “deprived”. Muzang’alu is Lemekhani’s elder sister.

“We want to know how it was possible that he was called up without his family being informed. Was he forced to do it?” she said in an interview.

Her brother traveled to Russia in 2019 to study nuclear technology there. There has been a cooperation between the two countries for years, making fairs and thus such places possible.

Lemekhani was the youngest of four siblings. According to the sister, the parents last heard from their son on August 31. In a telephone conversation, he told them that he was no longer in prison. His whereabouts are “confidential”. According to his sister, he could not or did not want to say more.

The family then reported the disturbing call to Zambian authorities, who assured them that Lemekhani’s whereabouts would be investigated. However, they had heard nothing since then – until the report of his death.

This is how the Zambian government is responding

The Zambian government said in a statement that it had no idea how a Zambian prisoner could be involved in the war on the Russian side. She is now demanding an explanation from Moscow.

Zambian Foreign Minister Stanley Kakubo said in a statement: “The Zambian government has requested urgent information from the Russian authorities about the circumstances under which a Zambian citizen serving a sentence in Moscow was recruited to fight in Ukraine and subsequently lost his life,” the statement said. said Business Insider.

What happens to the corpse?

The family wants Lemekhani’s body to be transported to Zambia for a proper burial. “We can’t close it, there are so many questions. But we want him to come home so we can let him rest in peace. We want him back with the people who love him. But we deserve answers.” the sister told the BBC.

According to Zambian authorities, Lemekhani’s body has been transferred to the southern Russian city of Rostov, not far from the Ukrainian border. There he is prepared for transport to the Zambian capital of Lusaka and handed over to his family.