(CNN) – The crash of a private plane carrying the leader and founder of the Russian private military group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, made headlines on Wednesday evening, near the Russian capital, Moscow, which sparked an interaction.
Prigozhin shares Russian President Vladimir Putin’s relatively humble beginnings, growing up in St. Petersburg’s grittiest neighborhood, and has known Putin since the 1990s before becoming a wealthy “oligarchy” by winning lucrative catering contracts with the Kremlin, earning him the nickname “Putin’s Chef.” .
Prigozhin’s transformation into a brutal warlord followed the 2014 Russian-backed separatist movements in the Donbass in eastern Ukraine, where Wagner’s forces operate as a mercenary group for Russian-backed causes around the world.
In recent months, Prigozhin has created a dilemma for Putin by becoming an outspoken critic of Russia’s military leaders, in May announcing that his forces will withdraw from the besieged eastern city of Bakhmut — after he complained for more than a month about not receiving enough support from the Kremlin in the grueling fighting for the city.
Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency had published the names of the 10 people on board Yevgeny Prigozhin’s private jet when it crashed, killing everyone on board.
A video clip circulating on pro-Russian military blogs Monday showed the leader of Russia’s private military Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claiming to be in Africa and talking about “making Russia greater on all continents.”
It is not clear when and where the video was filmed, but Prigozhin is shown holding a rifle standing in what appears to be desert.
He said: “We are working, the temperature is more than 50 degrees Celsius, everything is going exactly the way we like it, and the Wagner company is conducting reconnaissance and research operations, making Russia greater on all continents, and Africa more free.”
He added: “Justice and happiness for the African people, let’s make it a nightmare for ISIS, Al Qaeda and other thugs. We hire real heroes (the ancient Slavic warriors), and continue to fulfill the tasks that were set before us and that were promised to us.”
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2023-08-24 06:49:04
