MOSCOW, April 21 (Reuters) – Russia’s defence ministry said on Tuesday that two men, a Russian and a Ukrainian citizen, had been freed in a special operation in Mali after they were abducted in neighbouring Niger in 2024.
The ministry said the operation was carried out by Russia’s Africa Corps, a Kremlin-controlled paramilitary force. It said both men were employees of a Russian geological exploration company.
Russia’s Africa Corps, a paramilitary force that succeeded the former Wagner mercenary group, is active in several African countries including Mali, Equatorial Guinea and CAR.
The men were kidnapped in July 2024 in Niger by Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, an al Qaeda-linked militant group, the defence ministry said, adding that they had been held until their release in Mali.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov, Writing by Anna Peverieri; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
