Tourists who went on holiday to Russia forced to fight in Ukraine

The families of several Nepali and Indian tourists who went to visit Russia have said their sons were tricked into joining the Russian army to fight on the front line in Ukraine.

One man, Hemil Mangukiya, left his home in Gujarat, India for Russia last December intending to make a better living, but ended up dying far from home on a battlefield in Ukraine.

The 23-year-old had been lured to Russia by a recruitment video on YouTube, advertising a ‘security job’, but he called his family and said he hadbeen sent to military training camp then taken to the frontlines.

In late February, his family received a call that Hemil died in a missile strike in Ukraine.

His father Ashwin Mangukiya, 52, told The Guardian: ‘I think he hid from us the danger he was in. Our entire family is devastated by this. We are still trying to get back his dead body.’

Hemil may not be alone: a group of Indian nationals released a video saying they received a three-month visa to visit Russia on December 27, where they did sightseeing, but were then lured to Belarus and subsequently arrested.

The group of men from India are reportedly deployed in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, which has seen heavy fighting (Picture: Getty)

The group of seven were forced to sign documents without knowing what they were (Picture: CEN)

Four Nepali men issued a similar cry for help (Picture: CEN)

The seven have been named as Gagandeep Singh, Lovepreet Singh, Narain Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Harsh Kumar, and Abhishek Kumar – and said they were forced to sign paperwork, then sent to an army training camp and received weapons training before heading to the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

In a video smuggled out from their barracks, the group are seen wearing military winter camouflage jackets, and they repeat the claim that they did not know what the documentation was that they were signed.

Harsh Kumar, 19, from Karnal, Haryana, explained the predicament and begged for help with his six friends in the background.

His brother in India told local media that Harsh has received weapons training and has already been deployed to the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

Gurpreet Singh’s brother, Amrit Singh, said that the seven men had been ‘forced’ into the Russian army without realising what was going on.

He said that when they were presented with the documents, they were told they faced 10 years in prison if they did not sign.

Indian media said that up to 100 Indian nationals have so far been recruited as support staff by the Russian Army, with dozens of men allegedly coerced into fighting in Ukraine.

The Indian government confirmed last week that several Indian citizens had requested help to be discharged from the Russian army.

But four Nepali men also released a video pleading for help, saying they were also tricked into fighting for Russia.

The men, named as Sanjay, Ram, Kumar and Santosh, were seen in combat fatigues as one of them said: ‘When we came here we were told to go to the front line to fight in the war.

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‘Three Indian brothers who were with us are being rescued by their government. Nepal’s embassy is not able to help us, that’s why we are appealing to the Indian government.

‘Both countries share friendly ties. Your country has a powerful embassy. There were 30 of us, now only five remain.’

Russia already drafted 130,000 men to aide in its war in Ukraine in late 2023, but seems to be turning to any means to keep the conflict going.

It comes after Britain’s top general in January warned the public they may be conscripted to fight a war against Russia – after claiming the country’s military is currently ‘too small’ to handle the conflict of its own.

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