Ukraine Hunting Russian Forces In Syria and Africa (Worthy News Investigation)
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
DAMASCUS/KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Ukraine is targeting Russian forces in Syria and Africa as part of efforts to pressure Moscow to redeploy resources from Ukraine, Worthy News learned Thursday.
Several sources said Ukraine’s Directorate of Intelligence (HUR) special forces conducted an operation against a Russian military base in Syria last Sunday.
The attack reportedly targeted a facility on the southeastern outskirts of Aleppo, where Russian forces were manufacturing and testing attack drones.
The Kyiv Post newspaper shared footage of the operation, purportedly showing a HUR flag visible behind a berm near a garage used as a Russian-based storage facility.
The video, allegedly recorded by an intelligence officer, captures an explosion at the Russian facility followed by the detonation of ammunition.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Earlier, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency developed plans to conduct covert attacks on Russian forces in Syria last year using secret Kurdish help, according to a leaked top-secret U.S. intelligence document.
NEW BATTLEFIELD
The introduction of a new battlefield — thousands of kilometers (miles) from the war in Ukraine — appeared designed to impose costs and casualties on Russia and its Wagner paramilitary group, which is active in Syria.
That would compel Russia to redirect its military assets from Ukraine, which it invaded in February 2022, to strengthen its defenses in Syria.
Ukrainian officers considered training Syrian Democratic Forces operatives to strike Russian targets with “unmanned aerial vehicle attacks,” commonly known as drones.
Leading Ukraine’s charge to fight Russia “anywhere where Russians can be found” has been Major General Kyrylo Budanov, who oversees Ukrainian military intelligence operations.
Budanov himself has taken secret missions to attack Russia in the occupied Crimean Peninsula after 2014 and helped kill a lieutenant general from Russia’s FSB security service, Ukrainian sources say.
His HUR agency is separate from Ukraine’s domestic intelligence agency, much like the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), are different agencies in the United States.
But both Ukrainian intelligence agencies have been responsible for numerous drone strikes inside Russia, several Ukrainian and Western officials say.
CIA LINKS?
The HUR agency is widely believed to have close ties to the CIA, which reportedly helped develop the top-secret Ukrainian intelligence organization after Russia’s first invasion in 2014.
Since its inception, it has had the authority to collect intelligence outside Ukraine. Budanov’s initial unit was known for its daring missions behind enemy lines, and the CIA trained him himself, U.S. sources say.
Budanov stated his intention in March 2024 to bring the fight to Russia and confirmed reports that Ukraine is fighting Russian mercenaries in Africa. “We conduct such operations aimed at reducing Russian military potential anywhere where it’s possible,” Budanov told reporters. “Why should Africa be an exception?”
In Africa, Russia collaborated with Sudan’s military leadership to divert billions of dollars in gold, significantly depriving the citizens of Sudan of substantial state revenue, to help Russia circumvent Western sanctions, according to Western intelligence.
In 2021, Russia backed a military coup that ousted the transitional civilian government of Sudan. Critics say the move undermined the pro-democracy movement that had successfully removed “long-time dictator Omar al-Bashir.”
U.S. observers say Russia “exploited Sudan’s resources” and supported the coup to ensure continued access to these valuable assets.
In 2023, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba promised to “free Africa from Russia’s grip” as he waged a diplomatic counter-offensive.
MILITARY CAMPAIGN
By August last year, Ukraine’s military intelligence “Timur” unit was reportedly conducting a military campaign to hunt Russian mercenaries in Sudan.
Sergey Sukhankin, a senior fellow at the Jamestown Foundation, believes there “must have been an agreement” between Ukraine and its Western allies that provided military backing against Russia in the event Ukraine attacked Russian forces in Africa.
In recent weeks, Kyiv has also been capturing territory in Russia.
That has added to pressure on Moscow, which is now being forced to fight Ukrainian forces on multiple fronts, turning the war into an international armed conflict.