‘Sent to be killed’: How Russia forces migrants to fight in Ukraine

Kharkiv, Ukraine – Hushruzjon Salohidinov, 26, was moving arsenic a courier successful Saint Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest metropolis and President Vladimir Putin’s hometown.

But past year, the Tajik antheral and practising Muslim says helium was arrested portion picking up a parcel which constabulary claimed contained wealth stolen from aged women.

Salohidinov says helium ne'er interacted with the alleged criminals, but nevertheless spent 9 months successful the Kresty-2 pre-trial detention centre astir 32km (20 miles) from the city, portion a justice refused to commencement his proceedings due to the fact that of the “weak evidence” against him.

But alternatively of releasing him aft that, situation wardens threatened to spot him successful a compartment with HIV-infected inmates who, they said, would gang-rape him – unless helium “volunteered” to combat successful Ukraine.

“They said, ‘Oh, you’ll enactment connected a skirt now, you’ll beryllium raped,’” Salohidinov, who has raven achromatic hairsbreadth and a messy afloat beard, told Al Jazeera astatine a centre for warfare prisoners successful northeastern Ukraine, wherever helium is present being held, having been captured successful January this twelvemonth by Ukrainian forces.

Using a carrot-and-stick tactic, the wardens besides promised him a sign-up bonus of 2 cardinal rubles ($26,200), a monthly wage of 200,000 rubles ($2,620) and an amnesty from each convictions.

So, successful the autumn of 2025, Salohidinov signed up arsenic helium “saw nary different mode out”.

Officials successful Kresty-2, St Petersburg’s prosecutors’ bureau and Russia’s Ministry of Defence did not respond to immoderate of Al Jazeera’s requests for comment.

Hushruzjon Salohidinov, 26, a Tajik antheral forced to combat for Russia, astatine a captive of warfare installation [Mansur Mirovalev/ Al Jazeera]

‘Catching migrants’

Salohidinov is conscionable 1 of tens of thousands of labour migrants from Central Asia coerced by Russia to go soldiers arsenic portion of the Kremlin’s nationwide campaign, according to quality rights groups, media reports and Russian officials.

Hochu Jit, a Ukrainian radical that helps Russian soldiers surrender, has published verified lists of thousands of Central Asian soldiers similar Salohidinov.

“They are virtually sent to beryllium killed, nary 1 considers them soldiers that request to beryllium saved,” the radical wrote successful a 2025 station connected Telegram. These soldiers’ beingness expectancy connected the beforehand enactment is astir 4 months. “Losses among them are catastrophic,” the radical reported.

With its debased birthrate and ample lipid wealth, Russia has for years been a magnet for millions of labour migrants from ex-Soviet Central Asia, particularly Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The run by the Kremlin to unit Central Asians to combat successful Ukraine dates backmost to 2023 – the twelvemonth aft Russia’s penetration of Ukraine – erstwhile constabulary began rounding up anyone who didn’t look Slavic and charging them with existent oregon imagined transgressions specified arsenic a deficiency of registration, expired oregon “fake” permits oregon blurred stamps connected their documents. Sometimes, migrants are simply bused consecutive to conscription offices.

In 2025, Al Jazeera interviewed different Tajik man who said helium had been detained with an expired enactment licence and was past tortured into “volunteering” portion being subjected to countless xenophobic and Islamophobic slurs from his officers.

Migrants accidental they are abused, tortured and threatened with jailhouse oregon having their full families deported.

“The main mode of recruiting arsenic galore migrants arsenic imaginable is unit connected them with threats of deportation,” Alisher Ilkhamov, the Uzbekistan-born caput of the London-based Central Asia Due Diligence deliberation tank, told Al Jazeera.

Sometimes, migrants are simply duped.

Salohidinov said 1 serviceman successful his squad was an Uzbek who “didn’t talk a connection of Russian” and was fooled into “volunteering” portion signing papers astatine a migration centre.

In their reports astir “catching” migrants, officials often usage derogatory presumption astir them, and besides erstwhile they picture men who person obtained Russian passports but skipped registration astatine conscription offices. Since the Soviet era, specified registration has been obligatory for each men and, since 2024, a recently naturalised Russian nationalist tin suffer his citizenship if helium fails to bash it.

“We’ve caught 80,000 specified Russian citizens, who don’t conscionable privation to spell to the beforehand line, they don’t adjacent privation to spell to a conscription office,” main authoritative Alexander Bastrykin said successful May 2025, referring to the migrants’ alleged patriotic sentiments.

He boasted that 20,000 Central Asians with Russian passports were herded to the beforehand enactment successful 2025.

The twelvemonth before, helium said 10,000 Central Asians had been sent to Ukraine.

Such remarks resonate with the Russian nationalist that lives with “a precocious level of xenophobia successful the signifier of fearfulness and helplessness,” Sergey Biziyukin, an exiled absorption activistic from the occidental metropolis of Ryazan, told Al Jazeera.

“For them, specified phrases from Bastrykin are a signifier of sedative.”

What makes Central Asians casual targets is that they hail from constabulary states, which beryllium connected Moscow politically and economically, observers say.

“While the migrants are frightened into signing contracts, their motherland doesn’t truly wage immoderate attention,” Galiya Ibragimova, an Uzbekistan-born, Moldova-based determination expert, told Al Jazeera.

Despite hefty signup bonuses and relentless propaganda, the fig of Russians who privation to combat successful Ukraine fell by astatine slightest one-fifth this year, and Moscow volition strive to enlistee much Central Asians, she said.

Russian conscripts called up for subject work be a ceremonial marking their departure for garrisons from a recruitment centre successful Saint Petersburg, Russia, connected October 15, 2025 [Anton Vaganov/Reuters]

‘We’ll person our fingers broken’

After signing the declaration and leaving his debit paper with his sign-up bonus with his parents, Salohidinov was sent to the occidental metropolis of Voronezh for 3 weeks of grooming that did small to hole him for the war.

“We conscionable kept moving backmost and distant with guns,” helium said.

Their drill sergeants, helium says, told the conscripts that the standard-issue flak jackets, helmets, boots and flashlights were of subpar prime and urged them to transportation successful a cardinal rubles ($13,100) each for “better” gear.

The incidental corroborates reports connected dozens of akin cases successful Russian subject units.

Salohidinov was ordered to enactment successful a room – and was verbally abused and beaten for the slightest transgression.

Of 28 men successful his unit, 21 were Muslims – but their taste Russian officers ignored their pleas not to person pork successful meals, repeating a decades-old signifier of ignoring religion-related dietary restrictions dating backmost to the Soviet army.

The commanders demonised Ukrainians, telling them “that if we surrender, we’d beryllium tortured, person our fingers broken, maimed, get [construction] foam up our a**, person our teeth yanked retired 1 by one, person our arms broken”, Salohidinov says.

In aboriginal January this year, the conscripts were bused to the Russia-occupied Ukrainian portion of Luhansk.

Salohidinov says helium was tired, frightened and disoriented – Ukrainian drones were “always” supra them and a grenade detonation adjacent damaged his near eardrum.

A pistillate waits for quality astir a missing loved 1 arsenic immoderate Ukrainian soldiers instrumentality during a captive of warfare (POW) swap, amid Russia’s attacks connected Ukraine, successful an undisclosed determination successful Ukraine, connected April 11, 2026 [Thomas Peter/Reuters]

‘Glad I got captured’

On the 4th time of his service, Salohidinov was ordered to tally beyond Ukrainian positions arsenic portion of Russia’s caller maneuver to nonstop 2 oregon 3 servicemen to infiltrate the porous beforehand line.

The ngo was suicidal due to the fact that the terrain was open, dotted with landmines and the bodies of dormant Russian soldiers, portion Ukrainians were firing machineguns and flew drones supra them.

“I ran and ran and saw we were being changeable at,” helium said. “Me and my commandant decided to surrender voluntarily alternatively of dying for nothing.”

They detached their battle rifles’ magazines, raised their hands and yelled they were surrendering.

What followed was “a calm feeling, beautiful”, helium said. “They fed us, fto america person a smoke, gave america nutrient and h2o and adjacent cake.”

Now, Salohidinov hopes to instrumentality to Tajikistan and panics astatine the thought of being made portion of a captive swap – these person taken spot respective times each twelvemonth – and returning to Russia due to the fact that helium would beryllium sent backmost to the beforehand line.

Tajikistan and different Central Asian nations person ne'er endorsed Russia’s warfare successful Ukraine, but nor person they openly criticised it.

In August 2025, Tajikistan’s Prosecutor General Habibullo Vohidzoda declared that nary Tajik nationalist would beryllium charged for warring successful Ukraine.

So, what Salohidinov needs close present is an extradition request.

“I’m adjacent gladsome that I got captured, due to the fact that I’m not warring anyone now, not risking anything,” helium said. “I’ll adjacent accidental acknowledgment to Ukraine for taking maine prisoner.”

The Tajik embassy successful Kyiv did not respond to Al Jazeera’s petition for comment.