Appeal filed today after exiled Central African whistleblower’s asylum is rejected
(Paris, 9 July 2026) – Despite President Macron personally arbitrating in favour of bringing whistleblower Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo to safety in France in 2024, France is now closing its doors to him, said the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF) today. Journalist Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo was the driving force behind the 2024 exclusive investigation by Forbidden Stories and its partners on Russian pro paganda. His revelations on the disinformation system carried out by then-Wagner Group in the Central African Republic (CAR) were picked up by over 200 media and resulted in European sanctions against Mikhail Prudnikov, head of communication for Russia in the Central African Republic.
“The French authorities made a baffling decision leaving Ephrem without protection against threats to him and his family’s safety,” said Jimmy Kande, PPLAAF’s Executive Director. “We urge them to reconsider this shameful decision and grant him asylum.”
Unprecedented Disclosure
From 2019 to 2022, Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo served as an information liaison between the Russian and the Central African media, under the direction of a man he knew only as “Micha” — later revealed in the Forbidden Stories investigation to be Mikhail Prudnikov, a central figure in Moscow’s influence operations in the CAR. Yalike-Ngonzo was recruited to publish news articles in favour of CAR’s army and its new Russian partners, based on propaganda provided to him.
His breaking point came in February 2022, when Russian soldiers wounded two young Fulani herders and Prudnikov ordered him to rewrite the facts. A rival newspaper exposed the truth and Yalike-Ngonzo, suspected as the source, was threatened at gunpoint.
Determined to reveal what he had witnessed but fearing for him and his family’s lives, Yalike-Ngonzo had no choice but to flee CAR. After entrusting his case to the French authorities, he received the go-ahead to enter the country. But as he was about to board a flight to safety in February 2024, Yalike-Ngonzo was arrested on Russian orders and accused of treason. His passport and personal documents were seized and he was summoned for questioning the next day. His family made it safely onto the flight; he did not.
Then began a long and gruelling journey. Forced to cross the Oubangui River into the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yalike-Ngonzo spent months in hiding as inertia between the French authorities left him in limbo. Finally, President Macron personally intervened, granting him the laissez-passer that finally allowed him to reunite with his family.
From France, Yalike-Ngonzo spoke out to the international press. His story offered an unprecedented window into the internal workings of a system operating in secrecy and was picked up by over 200 publications around the world. In May 2025, the European Union imposed restrictive measures against Mikhail Prudnikov as part of a broader package targeting 21 individuals and 6 entities responsible for destabilising activities carried out on behalf of Russia. Sanctions included asset freezes and bans on access to European financial systems.
Appeal for Safety
Today, despite Yalike-Ngonzo fully cooperating with the French authorities for over two years, having served France’s interests by revealing the inner workings of Russia’s vast propaganda machine, the country has rejected his asylum application.
Yalike-Ngonzo’s testimony constituted “the Elysée’s first success against the Russian online propaganda machine” and exposes the wrongdoings of a power that made disinformation its primary tool of influence across Africa — quietly manipulating narratives, destabilising institutions, and extending its reach under the cover of disinformation, all while evading accountability.
“France’s commitment to combating disinformation in Africa loses credibility the minute it fails to protect those who come forward to do exactly that,” said Henri Thulliez, PPLAAF’s Head of Strategy. “To abandon Ephrem after pledging support is not an oversight, it’s a blatant contradiction.”
Should France fail to reconsider its decision, Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo will have no choice but to return to CAR, where he faces a grave risk to his life. PPLAAF urges France to grant Yalike-Ngonzo and his family asylum without delay.
