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Sunday, February 22, 2026
TopicMercenary

Topic: mercenary

Arabs to Abyssinians, India was once a mercenary magnet—Russia war shows it has turned exporter

From New World Cuban mercenaries to South East Asian combatants, various linguistic groups are represented in the battlefields that divide Russia from Ukraine.

India must legalise contract soldiers recruited to fight foreign wars. Agniveers are coming

Successive governments have been squeamish at the prospect of Indian citizens serving foreign wars. It's time to stop pretending the problem doesn’t exist and start protecting contract soldiers legally.

Russian mercenary chief Prigozhin posts first video since mutiny, suggests he is in Africa

In a Telegram video, Prigozhin speaks of making Russia greater on all continents & Africa more free. He is seen standing in a desert area in camouflage with a rifle in his hands.

Russian Wagner mercenary group head suggests his armed convoy on way to Moscow to topple army leadership

The dramatic turn of events looked like the biggest domestic crisis President Vladimir Putin has faced since he ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russia lures foreigners with citizenship if they fight in Ukraine, hires mercenaries, convicts

Meanwhile, the international community has slammed plans by separatist regions in Ukraine to hold referendums, calling it an attempt to divert attention from Russia’s battle reversals.

‘Mad Mike’ Hoare, the Kolkata-born Irish mercenary who hijacked an Air India plane in 1981

Michael Hoare, who died Tuesday in Durban, gained notoriety as a mercenary — world’s second-oldest profession.

On Camera

Youth Congress, your foolish protest helped the Modi govt climb out of the AI summit hole

In tactical terms, the shirtless protest was worse than a self-goal. Suddenly, the fiascos of the AI Summit were forgotten, and the Youth Congress’s disruption became the issue.

In the West, there’s anxiety. In India, optimism—Rishi Sunak says India poised to be leader in AI

On Wednesday, the former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was speaking in New Delhi at a Carnegie & Observer Research Foundation event on AI.

MoD, IAF agree on some exemptions to HAL for Tejas Mk1A, but no compromise on ‘must-have’ capabilities

IAF is fine with accepting the aircraft with 'must-haves', even if some other steps remain pending, which may take at least another year, it is learnt.

No country is ever fully sovereign. Cold War era taught India its real meaning

India’s fraught neighbourhood places multiple constraints on its strategic choices. It leaves no time to take a deep breath, lean back and reset.