Beaten and conscripted into Putin’s army: a Somali refugee attempts to reach Europe

Journalist Ilyas Ahmad Elmi hoped to join his wife and child in Germany when he fled Somalia – but the EU’s harsh border controls led him towards Russia’s war machine

A year ago, the Somali journalist Ilyas Ahmad Elmi set out for Europe. He had been repeatedly threatened by jihadi extremists at home, and hoped to make it to Germany, where he planned to seek asylum and be with his eight-year-old son.

“I left because I wanted to see my son, who I’ve never met … and because I had received threats,” said Elmi, in a telephone interview.