The case of Evans Kibet, a Kenyan man captured in Ukraine, has sparked a serious conversation between Nairobi and Kyiv.
The Ukrainian government has signaled readiness to engage with President William Ruto’s administration over the possible repatriation of Kibet, who was arrested by Ukrainian soldiers after being found fighting on the side of Russia in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
However, Ukrainian authorities have made it clear that he remains a prisoner of war under the Geneva Convention until a court decides otherwise.
According to BBC News Africa, Kibet’s situation is not unique. Ukraine revealed that several other African nationals have been detained under similar circumstances.
Those in custody reportedly come from countries such as Sierra Leone, Somalia, Egypt, Togo, and Kenya, as well as from Cuba and Sri Lanka.
Despite this revelation, both the Kenyan and Russian governments have not issued formal communication on Kibet’s matter, leaving his family in limbo.
Back home, his relatives are pleading with the Kenyan government to help secure his release. His cousin, who spoke to BBC Africa, described the pain the family is enduring after watching a video of Kibet in Ukrainian custody.
She explained that the incident had left her traumatised and unable to sleep, while the rest of the family remains in disbelief.
His younger brother described Evans as a humble man who had never been involved in anything of this nature, stressing that the family could not comprehend how he found himself in the middle of a war.
Kibet, 36, who is also a long-distance runner, narrated in a video released by the Ukrainian army how he ended up in the situation. He said he had travelled to Russia for a sporting event but when his two-week stay ended, his phone and passport were taken away.
He alleged that he was coerced into signing documents written in Russian, a language he did not understand, and later discovered that he had been forced into the Russian army.
After undergoing a week of training, he was pushed into battle.
In his account, he said he eventually escaped and wandered for two days in a forest on the border of Russia and Ukraine before surrendering to Ukrainian soldiers.
He maintains that he never went to Russia with the intention of joining the military and pleaded not to be sent back to Russia, fearing he could be killed for betrayal.
The calls for his release continue to grow, with his family urging the Kenyan government to intervene. The case points to the wider complexity of how foreign nationals, many of them unsuspecting, have found themselves caught in the Russia-Ukraine war.
For Kibet’s family, the hope is that Nairobi’s engagement with Kyiv will secure his safe return and end the distress they are currently facing.
