Wagner’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed in a plane crash in Russia, as were nine other people on board.
The news is reported by Russian news agencies.
The private plane with Prigozhin on the passenger list crashed in the Tver region, near Moscow, but the identity of the victims was not immediately confirmed.
However, the Russian State Station and the Civil Aviation Authority confirmed the death of the leader of the Wagner group.
According to the station Gray Zone, associated with the Wagner group, the plane was shot down by the air defense system, and it was also confirmed that Prigozhin died “as a result of the actions of Russian traitors.”
The station, named by BBCsaid local residents heard two explosions and saw two vapor trails before the fall.
“A private plane Embraer Legacy traveling from Moscow to Saint Petersburg crashed near the village of Kuzhenkino in the Tver region. There were 10 people on board, including three crew members. According to preliminary information, all occupants died,” Russian Emergencies said it ministry on Telegram.
ALERT – 10 morts, don’t let Wagner’s patron Evgueni Prigojine fly in a plane in Moscow (Tass). #prigozhin pic.twitter.com/5XINbqvyCD
– Info Françaises (@InfosFrancaises) August 23, 2023
The Ministry of Emergency Situations is already conducting an investigation on the ground.
“An investigation has been launched into the crash of the Embraer in the Tver region. According to the passenger list, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s name and surname are on the list,” the Federal Transport Agency said.
The plane hit the ground around 6:40 p.m. local time (two hours less in Lisbon) and then burst into flames less than 30 minutes after takeoff.
PRIGOZHIN PLANE EXPLODED
A plane allegedly owned by Wagner leader Prigozhin partially exploded in mid-air before crashing near the Tver region. pic.twitter.com/zoMIFw5AJn
—Jason Jay Smart (@officejjsmart) August 23, 2023
The aircraft was 16 years old and flew regularly on this route after being purchased by the Wagner Group in September 2020, according to Kommersant.
Ukraine has already reacted to the plane crash, insisting that what happened was a signal from the Kremlin to Putin’s opponents. “The demonstrative elimination of Prigozhin and the Wagner command two months after the coup attempt is Putin’s signal to the Russian elites ahead of the 2024 elections. Infidelity equals death,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak wrote on social media.
On Monday, Prigozhin appeared on video for the first time since the failed June 24 mutiny against the Kremlin, suggesting he had returned to Africa to make Russia “even bigger on all continents.”
In the video, Prigozhin did not explicitly say he was in Africa, but he appeared in a landscape similar to the African savannah and stated that the temperature around him was 50 degrees.
This Tuesday, General Sergei Surovikin, head of the Russian air and space force and known for his closeness to Prigozhin, was removed from office, according to the Russian daily RBC, citing a source who announced his resignation.
Surovikin fell out of favor after the failed armed uprising led by Prigozhin, who acknowledged at the time that he had personally planned the operation with the aforementioned general to take the city of Bakhmut, something the mercenaries accomplished last May.
updated
Source: DN
