Russia’s FSB Says Ex-Israeli Soldier Caught Trying to Join Ukrainian Army

April 4, 2024

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said it has detained and deported a former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldier who was allegedly seeking to join the Ukrainian army, state media reported Thursday.

“Yuval Lanzman, a former IDF soldier born in 1960, was detained in the Krasnodar region,” a spokesperson from the FSB branch in the southern Russian region was quoted as saying RIA Novosti news agency.

“[He] harbored intentions to join the Ukrainian armed forces to participate in hostilities against Russia,” the FSB added, claiming that Lanzman had sent his personal information to “banned terrorist groups” in Ukraine.

Lanzman received a “formal warning” that his actions were illegal and was subsequently deported to Israel without the right to return to Russia, the law enforcement agency said.

A video shared by RIA Novosti showed Lanzman sitting inside an open metal cage as a voice behind the camera issued a warning to him.

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