Zimbabwe Collects DNA From Families Searching for Relatives Missing in Russia’s War

Zimbabwean families searching for relatives who went missing or were reportedly killed after travelling to Russia have provided DNA samples to help authorities identify them.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade arranged a sample collection exercise in Bulawayo on 13 and 14 October. Relatives travelled from districts including Beitbridge, Jotsholo, Lower Gwelo and Masvingo, hoping the process could help establish what happened to their loved ones and eventually allow their remains to be brought home.

For many families, the search has lasted months, with little certainty about whether relatives are alive, missing, detained or dead.
Families still waiting for answers

One 20-year-old man travelled from Masvingo to provide a sample on behalf of his family because his mother was in South Africa. He said his 22-year-old brother had gone to Russia in January and was reported to have died the following month.

Zimbabwe is conducting DNA tests for families of citizens missing or killed after being recruited to fight in Russia’s war on Ukraine. Russia stands accused of recruiting Africans to cover its war losses — an allegation Moscow has always denied.

Al Jazeera’s Haru Mutasa reports. https://t.co/TpyTqLZntq

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) October 29, 2026

Other relatives said they had not known their family members were travelling to Russia until after they had left. One woman said her brother, a former teacher, went missing after travelling there.

The government said a sample from the missing person’s biological mother was preferred. If she could not attend, a maternal sibling could be considered, with other close biological relatives assessed by forensic specialists on a case-by-case basis.
Identification is only the first step

The DNA collection is intended to help establish the identities of missing or deceased Zimbabweans. Families are also seeking clear information about when results will be available and how confirmed remains can be repatriated for burial.

Some relatives have described months of trying to get answers from officials in Zimbabwe and Russia. The collection exercise offers a possible route to identification, but families are still waiting for a clear timeline for what happens next.

Their concerns also extend to the children and other dependants left behind. Relatives have asked whether support will be available for families whose main wage earners died abroad.

A Ukrainian intelligence presentation cited in a Nehanda Radio report said Russia recruited 530 Zimbabweans into its military between January and September 2026, compared with 65 recorded for all of 2025.

The presentation also put the number of foreign nationals who had signed Russian military contracts at 45,959, including 5,451 Africans.

It described an online advert used in Zimbabwe that promoted a programme for “specialists from Zimbabwe” but did not say applicants could be sent to fight in Ukraine. These are figures and claims attributed to Ukrainian intelligence, not a public tally from Zimbabwean authorities.

The cases have drawn attention to reports that Zimbabweans and other Africans were recruited to Russia through offers of civilian work, including driving and security jobs, before some ended up in military service and on the front line in Ukraine.

Zimbabwean reporting has documented alleged recruitment networks and cases in which families said they had lost contact with relatives after they travelled. Human rights group Amnesty International has also accused Russia of deceiving some foreign nationals into joining its forces. Moscow has denied accusations of coercive or illegal recruitment, while saying foreign nationals can enlist voluntarily.

Zimbabwe’s government has warned job seekers about fraudulent overseas employment offers and said police are working with regional and international partners on human trafficking concerns.

For families, the DNA process is a significant step towards finding out what happened. They are still waiting for confirmed results, reliable updates and, where deaths are established, the return of their relatives’ remains. *nehandaradio*