Former President Jacob Zuma’s daughter, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, allegedly recruited men who are reportedly forced to fight against their will in Donbas.
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Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former South African president Jacob Zuma, left, is greeted by supporters outside the High Court during her trial for terrorism linked to the July 2021 riots in Durban, South Africa on Monday, November 10, 2025.
Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla is a member of parliament for the MK Party [FILE: November 10, 2025]Image: AP Photo/picture alliance
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South African police on Sunday confirmed they are investigating claims that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former President Jacob Zuma, and two others conned 17 men into fighting for Russia in Ukraine.
Another of Zuma’s daughters, Nkosazana Bongamini Zuma-Mncube, accused her stepsister of sending the men to Russia before they were ordered to the front lines.
“These men were lured to Russia under false pretenses and handed to a Russian mercenary group to fight in the Ukraine war without their knowledge or consent. Among these 17 men are eight of my family members,” Zuma-Mncube said in a public statement.
Earlier this month, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office said it “received distress calls for assistance to return home from 17 South African men, ages 20 to 39, who are trapped in the war-torn Donbas.”
South Africans fighting for Russia in Ukraine
Zuma-Sambudla, who is also a member of parliament for her father’s uMkhonto weSizwe party (MK), did not immediately respond to the accusations.
She reportedly told the men they would train as bodyguards to work for the party.
