By KPC Reporter
In Nyamataro Satellite, Kitutu Central Ward, Kisii County, the world of a family whose son died in the Russia-Ukraine war has been torn apart.
The parents of Cliff Ledden Ndege, 31, are pleading with the government to help repatriate his body, so they can lay him to rest with dignity on the soil he called home.
Ndege left Kenya in December 2024, chasing opportunities amid the harsh reality of unemployment.
“He was full of dreams,” his mother, Mary Nyanchama, whispered through tears in their modest home.
On her phone, photos show Cliff smiling in combat gear, sent just weeks ago.
“He promised he’d return soon, with money to build us a better life,” she said, her voice breaking.
“But after revealing he had joined Russian military training—part of a shadowy recruitment drive targeting African youths through TikTok and WhatsApp—his communication dwindled.”
The devastating call came from a friend who had travelled with him.
Their unit was ambushed in fierce combat; Cliff died instantly, while his comrade now fights for life in a field hospital.
“He was our pillar,” father Omondi Ndege said, his eyes hollow.
“Who will help us now?”
Sources say that since 2023, more than 1000 young Kenyans have been lured into fighting for Russia, with at least 20 confirmed dead by February 2026.
As grief blankets Ndege’s home, neighbours gather to console the family, while the grassroots leaders echoing their cry.
The family’s appeal is direct and desperate: “Help us bury our son at home. Don’t let him rot in a foreign trench.”
The government has been lukewarm in stating its role in the departure of Kenyans to the war ravaged border of Ukraine and Russia.
In June last year, the government said that fifty Kenyans had secured new jobs in Russia, marking what Dr. Alfred Mutua described as “a new lease on life” for many who had been without income.
The group, drawn from various counties, was to earn Ksh. 115,000 monthly, with free food and housing, while working in a food packing factory.
“I urged them to bank their earnings every month in Kenya,” Mutua noted, emphasising savings for the future.
Their travel was funded by the Uwezo Fund, sparing them personal costs.
The first batch was welcomed in Moscow by embassy officials, with gratitude expressed to President Ruto and recruitment agency YUMNA for “ethical processes.”
Analysts at the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), say Russia took about 4,700 sq km (1,800 sq miles) of territory in 2025 – an area about twice the size of the city of Moscow – although Russia claims to have taken 6,000 sq km.
In eastern Ukraine, Moscow’s war machine has been churning mile by mile through the wide open fields of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions – also known as the Donbas – surrounding and overwhelming villages and towns.
It has been trying to gain full control of the area along with two more regions to the west – Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Shortly after the invasion, Russia held referendums to try to annexe all these regions – in the same way it had annexed Crimea in 2014 – but it has never had them under full control.