By KALOBWE BWALYA
GOVERNMENT has written to the Russian government demanding explanation on how a Zambian serving a jail sentence in that country found himself at the battlefront where he died.
Foreign Affairs and International Relations minister, Stanley Kakubo, said he was saddened by the death of the Zambian student Lemekhani Nathan Nyirenda 23 who was killed on the battlefront of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Mr Nyirenda was a government sponsored student who was pursuing nuclear engineering at the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute (MEPHI) in the Russian federation.
Mr Kakubo disclosed that Mr Nyirenda passed away on September, 22nd, 2022, in Ukraine.
Mr Kakubo explained that the embassy further established that Mr Nyirenda’s remains have since been transported to the Russian border town of Rostov in readiness for repatriation to Zambia.
He said he had been in touch with the family of the deceased in order to provide an update on details surrounding their loved one’s death once official communication is received from the Russian authorities.
“The ministry wishes to further state that in April 2020, Mr. Nyirenda contravened the laws of the Russian federation and as such was subsequently convicted and sentenced to nine years and six months imprisonment, he was serving his sentence at the medium security prison on the outskirts of Moscow.
It is however, not clear how, Mr Nyirenda, who was a prisoner, found himself on the battle field.
