Philip Obaji Jr.

Russia has recruited thousands of young foreigners into its army to fight in Ukraine amid severe manpower shortages caused by over a million Russian troops killed or wounded. Many signed up to support their families but were misled into believing they would not see active combat

The African men transported to Ukraine to fight Russia’s war

Took time in Paris to speak about the activities of Russian paramilitaries involved in the rape of dozens of girls and massacre of hundreds of civilians in West & Central Africa. Also explained how Russia targets European politics using hundreds of trolls operating in Africa.

Told Austrian TV how Russian fighters in Africa have committed atrocities while propping up juntas & how they’re weaponizing the continent as a launchpad for disinformation ops flooding Europe with lies to sow chaos and division. Africa is paying in blood. Europe in instability

In Vienna, I took time to explain to diplomats, human rights campaigners, and civil society leaders how Russia’s African troll armies don’t just stir trouble locally but flood social media and diaspora channels with coordinated narratives designed to hit Europe where it hurts.

Over the past weeks in Europe, I’ve been sounding the alarm in meetings & forums: Russia’s hybrid war isn’t just in Ukraine or Africa, it’s already on European soil. From sabotage plots to disinformation and proxy forces destabilizing the continent, the threat is real and growing

I told young people in Esslingen, Germany, how Russian paramilitaries operate in Africa. I explained how these mercenaries have massacred hundreds of civilians, raped dozens of girls and tortured so many boys. I warned that if we overlooked this, someday it could happen in Europe

Here’s how I walked into the English-language TV studio at France 24 in Paris to speak about crimes, including rape of children and massacre of civilians, by Russian paramilitaries deployed across West and Central Africa.

Russian disinformation operations flooded Germany with fake videos, AI deepfakes and migrant panic ahead of the 2025 federal election, aiming to sow chaos, boost pro-Kremlin voices & weaken support for Ukraine. Europe must wake up. The Kremlin is playing the long game.

Russia has a plan to cause trouble in Europe using trolls from Africa. They are setting up troll farms in countries like Ghana & Nigeria. These trolls spread lies in the media, aimed at creating division, fear, and chaos so they can weaken Europe’s power. The EU must wake up.

For years, I have sought to amplify the stories of survivors of massacres, victims of torture and rape, families torn apart by exploitation & violence at the hands of Wagner mercenaries. These are not abstract atrocities. They are the lived realities of miners, women & children

I was proudly accompanied by Lord Mayor Matthias Klopfer, Deputy Mayor Yalcin Bayraktar, members of the German Parliament, Sebastian Schäfer and David Preisendanz and member of the state parliament of Baden-Württemberg, Stephan Köthe in signing the city of Esslingen’s golden book

Last night, the city of Esslingen honored me with the prestigious Theodor Haecker Prize for “extraordinary courage and journalistic integrity” that “has brought to light the influence and crimes of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, in the Central African Republic and in Mali.”

Proud to spend time with some of the brightest students in Esslingen, Germany, and with the city’s Lord Mayor Matthias Klopfer. Spoke about how Russian disinformation targets democracy in Germany and parts of Europe by amplifying societal divisions on issues like migration and energy

Young people across the world must join the fight against Russian disinformation because it is a hybrid war weapon flooding our feeds with lies, from fueling coups in Africa to destabilizing democracies in Europe, all to exploit our continent, divide us & weaken the global order

Dear Europe — Russia is planning a massive, multi-layered crisis designed to shatter your stability, including orchestrated migration surges & coordinated disinformation to fracture NATO & EU unity. Putin is not bluffing. He’s preparing the ground while the West debates. Wake up!

Russia is recruiting students nationwide with large financial packages to join drone units in Ukraine as operators and engineers, while businesses in the central Ryazan region face government-imposed quotas to sign up employees for the army.

I documented villages where civilians disappeared after encounters with Russian fighters. I spoke with kids who described torture. I walked through areas where people lived in fear. What I saw convinced me that Africa was becoming the stage for a new kind of geopolitical struggle

I’m not afraid to inform Europe that Russia’s hybrid warfare in Africa is intentionally engineered not only to exploit resources and destabilize nations, but also to generate instability that drives large-scale migration toward Europe and weakens EU democracy and cohesion.

Fired up and ready to speak in Kampala, Uganda, about crimes, including rape and torture, committed by Russian paramilitaries deployed across Africa.

Russia recruits teens for drone production in same factory where African women were forced to assemble Iranian made drones

Today, at the side event of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, I made it clear: Russia is desperate to damage Europe. Its operations in Africa are hybrid warfare aimed at fueling instability, driving migration flows northward & weakening EU unity. Europe must act!

In Kenya, families protested in Nairobi demanding the government bring home their sons duped into joining Russia's army for the Ukraine war. Many were lured with promises of decent jobs as drivers or guards, but ended up on the front lines. Over 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited

This Kenyan man thought he was traveling to Russia to join a basketball team. Instead, he was forced to join the Russian military and fight Russia’s war in Ukraine.

My colleagues and I uncovered how Russia pays media outlets in West Africa as low $80 to publish disinformation that is weakening European security and undermining democracy in Africa. Soon, Europe could face a migrant crisis & Africa could be dealing with military dictatorships.

Russian intelligence is now supervising Russia’s influence operations in Africa and Latin America, according to a new investigation which exposed a vast network of lobbying, disinformation, but also destabilization plans, serving the interests of the Kremlin.

Europe can't afford to wait. Russian disinfo in Africa directly threatens Europe. Kremlin networks flood platforms with fake successes of juntas & stories painting Europe as the enemy. These campaigns open doors for Moscow's resource grabs & migration leverage against Europe

Russia is engineering a migration bomb for Europe. Disinformation on local airwaves in Mali and Niger pushes desperate youth toward deadly routes; Russian paramilitaries guard traffickers in Libya. Endgame? Chaos at EU gates, fractured politics. Europe ignores this at its peril.

Russian arms merchant Viktor Bout, who was convicted of conspiring to kill Americans, wants to return to Africa. The weapons manufacturer, who used his companies to smuggle arms from Eastern Europe to Africa, says he is very interested in South Sudan, Chad, Malawi & Botswana

Russia is desperate to damage Europe, and I know this because I’ve spent years investigating its plans. Russia's operations in Africa are hybrid warfare aimed at destabilizing Europe: fueling instability, driving migration flows northward, and weakening EU unity. Europe must act

Russia is engineering a migration crisis for Europe, spreading disinformation across West Africa to push desperate people toward deadly Mediterranean routes, while private militias control smuggling networks in Libya. The aim is to destabilize & divide the EU. Time to counter it.

The warmth, love, and incredible hospitality of the Ukrainian people touched my heart deeply. Even in the toughest of times, they welcomed me, an African journalist, like family. Thank you for your kindness and resilience. Героям слава! Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦🙏

A foreign mercenary gives shocking details of how Russian forces abandon fallen and injured soldiers on the battlefield. This is a lesson for those Africans on the verge of joining Russia’s war on Ukraine

These are voices of Russian soldiers confessing to their families about crimes they’ve committed in Ukraine. It’s similar to confessions from Wagner paramilitaries who’ve committed numerous human rights abuses in Africa

Russian military commanders are detaining wounded amputees in cages and subjecting them to torture in order to force their return to active combat on the front lines.

This Nigerian went to Moscow hoping to find work as a migrant laborer, but instead signed a Russian military contract—without knowing the language—and was sent to fight in Ukraine, where he was captured. He claims he only grasped that he had become a soldier during his deployment

Ugandan man captured in the war on Ukraine urges Africans: Don't fall for Russia's fake job promises

Russian-recruited African mercenaries targeted and struck by an FPV drone during an ambush in Ukraine.

Russia is clearly seeking Cameroonian support — and fighters — for its war on Ukraine

A Russian soldier records a large group of African mercenaries who have been recruited to fight in the war against Ukraine.  While filming them from behind, he quietly remarks in Russian:  "Look how many disposables are here."

Russian forces posted this video showing a Black fighter used as a human bomb.

Russia's African footholds—now in over a dozen countries—serve as testing grounds for tactics later deployed in Europe. Control over migration routes in Libya and the Sahel gives Moscow leverage to weaponize refugees, much like Belarus did on the EU's eastern border in 2021.

At the Austrian Parliament in Vienna last night, I made a passionate appeal to Europe to act fast to combat Russia’s extremely dangerous hybrid warfare. Russia's hybrid warfare knows no borders. What starts as a tweet in Bamako can fuel division in Brussels. We must act now.

I’m proud to have spent time with some of America’s finest journalism students, who got to find out how I spent the last seven years uncovering and documenting over 100 atrocities, including rape and torture, by Russian paramilitaries deployed in Africa, at great personal risk

Glad to speak on Russian disinformation and human rights atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries at an event hosted in Geneva, Switzerland, by the Missions of Latvia, Estonia and Poland to the United Nations.

What a welcome I’ve had in Ukraine, where I have met some of the bravest and most resilient people on earth. Thanks to the Mission of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea for the invitation.

I’m here to tell friends about atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries deployed across Africa

Beautiful welcome to Washington Post HQ. Excited to meet some of the world’s most amazing journalists and happy to continue to uncover and document abuses committed by Russian paramilitaries in Africa.

For years, I've been exposing Russia's atrocities in Africa—from Wagner's blood-soaked mines in CAR to their wars in Mali. The truth hurts, and now Russian trolls are targeting me with insults & death threats. They want me silenced. I won't be. Africa's stories deserve to be told.

It was such a huge honor to have described crimes committed by Russian paramilitaries deployed in West & Central Africa at the Truth to Justice conference in Berlin.

Spoke about killings and abuses committed by Russian mercenaries in West and Central Africa at the migration congress in Mérida, Spain. Many were shocked.

With sadness, I spoke about massacre, rape and human rights atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries deployed in West and Central Africa at the Oslo Freedom Forum in Norway. It was shocking to so many.

From Africa to Eastern Europe, I’ve listened to many people talk about the brutality of Russian fighters who’ve committed human rights abuses in these areas. It doesn’t matter where it happens, the stories are similar. We can’t be quiet. We betray our friends when we stay silent.

Fired up and ready to speak about atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries in Africa

Russia and Belarus have manipulated illegal migration, using it as a hybrid weapon against Poland and Western nations.

Russia has a long history of using migration as a weapon in its hybrid warfare against the West. From Africa to North America and to Eastern Europe, the Kremlin has deliberately pushed waves of migrants to Western nations in an attempt to create chaos.

Fired up and ready to speak about atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries in Africa to journalists, activists and human rights campaigners from around the world, gathered in Mérida, Spain, for the International Congress on Migration and Development Journalism.

Ukrainian soldiers captured a Kenyan citizen serving in the Russian army in Kharkiv Oblast. The captured Kenyan national, who claimed to be an athlete back at home, said he traveled to Russia as a tourist and was deceived into joining the Russian army.

Two months from now, I will be showcasing, in South Africa, how Russia is spreading disinformation across West Africa, destabilising democratic processes and bolstering support for authoritarian regimes.

This is how the Russian Wagner Group hired British citizens to carry out an attack in London.

The number of African migrants in Russia is rising sharply. Relatives from Cameroon report the deaths of their loved ones who signed contracts for work in Russia and ended up in the war in Ukraine. Some went into it knowingly, while others expected civilian jobs with high salaries.

Today, I turn 40. Despite the scars from my arrest & torture by CAR soldiers, ordered by Russian mercenaries, I’m more determined than ever to expose their crimes in Africa. Join me in this fight. Please donate to my GoFundMe to support my investigations: www.gofundme.com/f/philip-oba...

Across West Africa, Russian-backed entities are spreading disinformation through media outlets & social platforms, encouraging people to embark on perilous journeys to Europe with false promises of opportunity and prosperity. These campaigns are designed to destabilize.

Reporting on the Russian Wagner Group has come at a personal cost. I’ve been abducted, tortured, and targeted with death threats by their operatives & allies. Yet, I continue to speak out because the voices of the victims—the miners, the mothers, the children—deserve to be heard.

Thank you so much. It seems you gave GoFundMe a tip. For future donations you can remove tip, if you don’t want it, as illustrated here:

The Wagner Group’s atrocities are not just an African problem; they are a global crisis. The gold extracted through forced labor funds Russia’s war in Ukraine. The disinformation they spread undermines democratic institutions worldwide. Their impunity emboldens other mercenaries to operate unchecked

Russian trolls paint Europe as a land of endless possibilities, urging Africans to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean. By fueling irregular migration, Russia aims to overwhelm European borders, strain resources, and exacerbate political tensions within the European Union

Contrary to what many Russian trolls want you to believe, I don’t work for the American or British government. I am simply a journalist determined to expose wrongdoings. There’s a huge effort from many Russian agents to undermine my reporting. Don’t pay attention to them.

Two years ago, I became the first African to receive the Jaime Brunet International Prize for documenting “more than a hundred human rights abuses committed by mercenaries from the Wagner Group and their allies in West Africa.” Sadly, Wagner atrocities still continue in Africa.

I’ve been saying this for many months and I’ll continue to say: Russia is desperate to create a migration crisis too difficult for Europe to handle. It will succeed if Europe continues to ignore warnings like this.

Putin, STOP!

Fired up and ready to speak about atrocities committed by Russian paramilitaries in Africa at the Oslo Freedom Forum in Norway.

Here are more than 19,000 examples of pro-Russia disinformation. This database exposes how the Kremlin spreads lies across various platforms, languages and borders. euvsdisinfo.eu/disinformati...

This is Russia’s vision for children in Africa