- Plane crashes north of Moscow
- Wagner’s Prigozhin on board and no survivors – authorities
- Telegram channel linked to Wagner says Prigozhin dead
- He led a mutiny against army top brass in June.
- There was no official comment from the Kremlin or the Defence Ministry.
- “I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” US President Joe Biden said.
Russia’s most powerful mercenary Yevgeny Prigozhin was on board a plane that crashed on Wednesday evening north of Moscow with no survivors, the Russian authorities said, two months to the day after he led an abortive mutiny against the army top brass.
There was no official comment from the Kremlin or the Defence Ministry on the fate of Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group and a self-declared enemy of the army’s leadership over what he argued was its incompetent prosecution of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Since then, uncertainty has surrounded the fate of Wagner and its controversial chief.
Russia’s Ministry for Emergency Situations on Wednesday announced the crash of a private plane travelling between Moscow and Saint Petersburg. According to preliminary information, all 10 people on board died, including three crew members, the ministry said.
Russia’s aviation agency later said the Wagner chief was on board. Telegram channels linked to Wagner posted footage, that AFP could not independently confirm, showing the wreckage of the plane burning in a field.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said it opened an investigation into the crash. The bodies of eight people have been found so far at the site of the crash, RIA Novosti said citing the emergency services.
Putin did not mention the crash and hailed “all our soldiers who are fighting bravely and resolutely” in the special military operation in Ukraine.
But Kyiv and Washington reacted swiftly to initial reports of the crash. “I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” US President Joe Biden said. “There’s not much that happens in Russia that (President) Putin’s not behind. But I don’t know enough to know the answer.”
Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhaylo Podolyak said on social media that the plane crash was “a signal from Putin to Russia’s elites ahead of the 2024 elections. ‘Beware! Disloyalty equals death.”
During Russia’s offensive in Ukraine, launched on February 24, 2022, Prigozhin, who previously operated in the shadows came into the spotlight. He spearheaded the capture of several Ukrainian towns including Bakhmut, and harshly criticized Russia’s conventional military leadership.
But the fate of Prigozhin remained unclear: he seemed to enjoy a certain amount of freedom and took part in a meeting at the Kremlin where he refused to cede command of his mercenary group. Still, he mostly remained out of the public eye.
The mercenary group maintains a strong military presence in Africa, where it has partnered with several nations, including Mali and the Central African Republic.
(With inputs from agencies)
