Ukraine Unveils Identities of Nigerians Killed in War Against Russia
On
February 12, 2026, the Ukrainian Defence Intelligence (UDI) publicly revealed the
identities of two Nigerian nationals who lost their lives while fighting as
mercenaries for Russia in the ongoing war against Ukraine.
The men were identified as Hamzat Kazeem Kolawole, born April 3, 1983, and Mbah Stephen Udoka, born January 7, 1988. According to UDI, both were discovered in the Luhansk region, where they had been deployed as part of Russia’s 423rd Guards Motor Rifle Regiment, a unit within the 4th Guards Kantemirovskaya Tank Division.