YAOUNDÉ, Oct. 30 — Families seeking news of Cameroonians they say were recruited into Russia’s army marched to the Russian Embassy in Yaoundé on Oct. 28, pressing both governments for answers about missing and dead relatives.
Africanews reported families’ claims that some relatives were offered civilian work before ending up in combat in Ukraine. Individual enlistment and deployment circumstances remain unverified.
Ahead of the march, the “Bring Back Our Sons and Brothers” collective called for information about Cameroonians reported dead or missing, identification of those killed and action against recruitment networks it describes as clandestine.
Catherine Djock told Euronews that her husband went to Russia expecting kitchen work and that she had received no information about him for nine months. “For nine months, I have had no information about my husband’s situation - whether he is alive or not,” she said. His whereabouts and condition remain unverified.
INPACT’s All Eyes on Wagner project lists 335 Cameroonians recruited into the Russian army between 2023 and mid-2025, with 94 deaths recorded in its database. Across 35 African countries, the project’s database lists 1,417 recruits and 316 combat deaths, more than 22% of identified recruits. INPACT has said its figures are incomplete.
A February report by INPACT said Russia’s recruitment drive was a response to personnel shortages. It described recruiters using false job offers, education promises, travel agencies and online outreach to exploit economic and social vulnerabilities.
Cameroon’s Ministry of External Relations (MINREX) said its foreign minister met Russia’s ambassador on April 7 to discuss Cameroonians enlisted in the Russian army. The ministry said the minister expressed the government’s and victims’ families’ “vivid concern.” Its public statement gave no death toll.
Separately, The Associated Press reported that a ministry memo said Russia had notified Cameroon that 16 contract soldiers had died and that arrangements were made to contact their families. The memo’s figure and the All Eyes on Wagner database count come from separate sources; the ministry’s public statement did not provide a death toll.
