Yevgeniy Prigozhin was one of Vladimir Putin’s top allies, nicknamed his “chef” due to his catering business ties to the Kremlin. He also headed technology companies, some of which the Justice Department indicted over their activities during the 2016 election. Nothing will come from those charges. But in June, Prigozhin led an armed rebellion against Putin, leading his mercenary army, the Wagner Group, on a march on Moscow.
The insurrection barely lasted 96 hours, probably due to the lack of manpower. However, reports show that the Wagner Group took over some municipalities in southern Russia. Prigozhin claimed a holy crusade against the nation’s military leadership, which he blamed for leading the country into war in Ukraine based on false pretenses. It really centered on his opposition to Wagner being absorbed into the regular army.
Prigozhin was allowed to remain in exile in Belarus, but this is Russia. Rebellions against the leadership seldom go unpunished. I don’t mean to get conspiratorial, but are we shocked that Prigozhin might be dead? He was reportedly on a jet plane that crashed today. There are no survivors (via WaPo):
Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the Wagner Group mercenary chief who led a short-lived mutiny against the Kremlin in June, was listed as a passenger on a plane that crashed in Russia on Wednesday, killing all 10 people on board, including three pilots and seven passengers, according to Russian state news agency Tass, which cites the press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. Russia’s emergency services did not immediately confirm whether Prigozhin had been on board and died.
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin killed in plane crash in Russia, with nine other people on board also dead https://t.co/MyWc67NhPa
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) August 23, 2023
BREAKING: Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was listed as a passenger on a private jet that crashed with no survivors, authorities say https://t.co/wRfQl2Erob pic.twitter.com/4tvtJhn1mi
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 23, 2023
NY Mag has more:
Prigozhin, the public face of the Wagner Group, was reportedly aboard the jet flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg along with six other passengers and three crew. Witnesses described hearing two explosions, and several videos show the plane plummeting to earth in the Tver region, which is north of Moscow. Videos of bodies in the wreckage have emerged, but none are identifiable as Prigozhin. Wagner-related social-media accounts allege that Russia shot down the plane, and flight data indicates that the plane had not previously been descending when it disappeared from radar.
Given Putin’s well-known propensity for revenge, it would hardly be surprising if he had sought vengeance on Prigozhin after the aborted uprising, which marked the most serious challenge ever to the Russian president’s hold on power. (President Biden joked that if he were Prigozhin, “I’d be careful what I ate.”) Prior to his revolt, Prighozin was granted highly unusual leeway to criticize the Russian military throughout the Ukraine war, in which the Wagner Group had taken an increasingly assertive role. But over the last two months, his status has been unclear. This week, a video emerged of Prigozhin in Africa, touting the work of his mercenary forces there. It’s unclear what he was doing in Russia at the time of his purported death.
Da svidania, sir.
UPDATE: He's dead:
The head of the Ukrainian president’s office has posted an audio link on his Telegram channel of AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell.” Andriy Yermak did not leave any other comment.
[...]
Yevgeny Prigozhin “won’t be missed in Belarus,” according to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, a Belarusian politician who is the primary rival to the country’s Russia-aligned President Alexander Lukashenko.
“He was a murderer & should be remembered as such,” Tsikhanouskaya wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“His death might dismantle Wagner’s presence in Belarus, reducing the threat to our nation & neighbors,” she added.
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