Russia's Secret Army: Iraq’s Tiktok Mercenaries Fight and Die for Moscow
Edited By WION Video Desk
Published: Nov 05, 2025, 23:23 IST | Updated: Nov 05, 2025, 23:23 IST
Young Iraqis like Mohammed Imad are leaving home for Russia, lured by promises of money, passports, and a new life. Many disappear, never returning. TikTok and Telegram influencers are recruiting Iraqi men to fight in Ukraine, often without family knowledge, offering salaries four times higher than Iraq’s military pay, bonuses up to $20,000, and pensions. Families wait in agony, unsure if their sons are alive. Thousands of foreign fighters now serve alongside Russian troops, risking death in a war that has nothing to do with them.
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