A report by the Dutch non-profit WHAT TO FIX reveals that social media accounts linked to three individuals sanctioned by the European Union for pro-Russian foreign interference continued to display monetization features months after the sanctions were imposed. The findings, released this week, underscore persistent challenges in enforcing EU restrictive measures across digital platforms.
The analysis examined 21 accounts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X belonging to Nathalie Yamb, Sylvain Afoua, and Justin Tagouh. Combined, these profiles reached over four million followers. The EU sanctioned the trio in 2025 for participating in influence operations targeting African audiences and supporting Kremlin-aligned information manipulation campaigns.
Key Figures and Their Networks
Nathalie Yamb, a Swiss-Cameroonian influencer and political commentator, commands more than two million followers, according to the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. The EU states that Yamb has adopted Moscow's rhetoric and maintains ties with AFRIC, an organization linked to Russian private military companies. Justin Tagouh founded Afrique Media, a Francophone TV and digital network that announced a partnership with Russian state outlet RT in 2022. Researchers from the African Digital Democracy Observatory noted that Afrique Media covered Wagner Group activities and republished RT content. Sylvain Afoua, also known as Egountchi Behanzin, leads the Ligue de Défense Noire Africaine (LDNA), a pan-African activist group dissolved by French authorities in 2021.
The sanctions reflect growing European concern over Russia's influence operations in Africa, particularly in Mali, where military authorities deepened ties with Moscow after French forces withdrew in 2022. Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group and its successor, Africa Corps, have expanded security cooperation in the region, while pro-Russian information campaigns portray Moscow as a strong ally and denigrate Western powers.
Under EU sanctions, no funds or economic resources may be made available to designated individuals. Yet WHAT TO FIX found that monetization tools—including Facebook Stars, Creator Subscriptions, TikTok Subscriptions, and YouTube Channel Memberships—remained active on several accounts linked to Yamb, Afoua, and Tagouh well after the sanctions took effect.
Victoire Rio, Executive Director of WHAT TO FIX, explained: “There’s different ways you can make money as a creator… The most notable of those are royalty programmes where the platform is actually the one that’s making direct payment to those accounts based on the engagement that they generate.” The report does not confirm whether any payments were actually made, but it highlights that the platforms enabled the potential for monetization.
During reviews conducted between January and April 2026, researchers observed that monetization features were present on multiple accounts. Some were later removed: TikTok took down an account linked to Afoua after researchers raised concerns, and YouTube removed a Channel Membership feature from the LDNA channel. An X account linked to Yamb that appeared monetized in January was no longer monetized by April.
In a statement, YouTube said: “Google is committed to compliance with applicable sanctions and trade compliance laws, and enforces related policies under our Terms of Service. If we find that an account violates our Terms of Service, we take appropriate action.” The Cube, Euronews’ fact-checking team, also identified a separate TikTok account linked to Afoua created after the first was removed; the platform swiftly deleted it after being flagged.
WHAT TO FIX argues that the findings raise broader questions about how platforms screen creators before granting access to monetization tools. “There's very little transparency about how these processes are meant to work, let alone how they're actually working in practice,” Rio said. She also noted that the issue implicates the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), particularly Article 34, which requires the largest online platforms to identify and assess systemic risks from their services. “Our argument is that platform monetisation practices actually are a risk factor on all systemic risks. And platforms should be under Article 34 of the DSA, assessing this risk and developing some mitigation measures,” she added.
The report comes as the EU continues to refine its sanctions framework, including recent expansions such as the sanctions on Hamas Politburo members. It also echoes concerns about enforcement gaps, as seen in the delayed sanctions on Patriarch Kirill. The findings suggest that without robust platform oversight, EU sanctions risk being undermined by the very digital ecosystems they aim to regulate.
