Russia says Africa Corps freed Russian, Ukrainian nationals in Mali

Russia’s defence ministry said Tuesday that its Africa Corps unit had freed two hostages held in Mali, almost two years after they were captured by an al-Qaeda-linked group in neighbouring Niger.

The two men, Oleg Greta, a Russian citizen born in 1962, and Yuri Yurov, a Ukrainian born in 1970, were employees of a Russian geology company.

In August 2024, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM) released a video featuring two men it said had been captured in Mbanga, southwest Niger. Moscow said they had been taken hostage the month before.

The men were freed by a “special operation” carried out by Russia’s Africa Corps in Mali, the defence ministry said.

“An initial medical examination by Russian doctors at the Africa Corps hospital revealed that they suffer from numerous medical conditions and severe physical exhaustion,” the ministry said in a statement on social media. It published a video of the pair slouched down, one leaning against a pillow under a blanket.

The Africa Corps succeeded the Wagner mercenary group in Africa, deploying fighters alongside armies in Libya and Mali.

Mbanga is in Niger’s Tillaberi region, near the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali. Several gold mines are located there.

The defence ministry did not say how the operation was carried out or whether any ransom was paid.

Russia has deployed military instructors and paramilitary groups to several juntas in Africa’s Sahel region to fight jihadist insurgencies. Amid its war on Ukraine, Moscow has sought to expand its political, economic and military footprint in Africa.

SOURCE: AFP