International Desk, 24th August: Yevgeny Prigozhin, a prominent figure known as the most powerful mercenary in Russia and a vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin, tragically lost his life in a plane crash north of Moscow on Wednesday evening. The crash claimed the lives of all passengers on board.
The incident occurred just two months after Prigozhin led an unsuccessful mutiny against the country’s top military officials. His leadership of the Wagner mercenary group had positioned him as a self-proclaimed adversary of the army’s leadership, citing their perceived incompetence in the execution of Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.
While no official statements have been issued by the Kremlin or the Defence Ministry regarding Prigozhin’s fate, the Telegram channel Grey Zone, linked to Wagner, declared him dead and lauded him as a hero and patriot who had fallen at the hands of unnamed individuals termed as “traitors to Russia.”
In the absence of confirmed details and amidst conjecture, some of Prigozhin’s supporters placed blame on the Russian state for his demise, while others looked towards Ukraine, which was on the verge of celebrating its independence day.
As a gesture of tribute and mourning, the building housing Wagner’s offices in St Petersburg illuminated its windows with a large cross after nightfall.
Prigozhin’s passing leaves the Wagner Group without its leader and raises uncertainties about its future activities, particularly in Africa and other regions. The group had drawn the ire of President Putin in June when it attempted an unsuccessful armed uprising against the nation’s army leadership.
Regardless of the circumstances surrounding Prigozhin’s death, his mutiny will be remembered as one of the most significant challenges to the authority of President Putin since he assumed power in 1999.