Yevgeny Prigozhin: What is known about the plane crash

Did Vladimir Putin take his revenge on Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin? After a plane crash near Moscow, there are many indications on Wednesday evening. What we do and don’t know about the incident.

What is known about the plane crash

Prigozhin is most likely dead. According to the Russian aviation authority, he was on board the plane, which crashed in the Tver region between Moscow and St. Petersburg on Wednesday. Ten people were in the machine, including three crew members, the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations had announced shortly before in the online service Telegram. The flight took place “within the framework of a properly issued airspace permit”.

Associates of the Wagner Group Telegram channel “Grey Zone” confirmed Prigozhin’s death shortly thereafter. “Evgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin, head of the Wagner group, Hero of Russia, a true patriot of his fatherland, died at the hands of traitors to Russia,” said the channel, which Prigozhin himself used in the past. Two planes from Wagner’s private army were said to have been in the air. The second turned around on the flight to St. Petersburg and landed at Ostafyevo Airport south of Moscow.

Vladimir Rogov, an employee of the Russian occupation administration in the Zaporizhia region, also wrote on Telegram that Prigozhin’s death had been confirmed to him by members of the Wagner troupe.

There is a high probability that it is too Wagner commander Dmitri Utkin among the fatalities. His name was also on the passenger list published by the Russian authorities. This was also confirmed by the Telegram channel “Grey Zone”.

According to the state news agency Interfax the bodies of all ten people on board recovered been. The search operation was thus concluded.

According to the Machine from 3700 meters altitude to have crashed.

What is still unclear

Above all: what exactly happened. There is a suspicion that Prigozhin’s machine was deliberately brought down. However, there is still no solid evidence for this. But the Wagner boss had one two months ago Quasi-uprising against Putin instigated, had moved to Moscow with his soldiers and then turned away shortly before the Russian capital. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is said to have negotiated a dubious deal, the charges were dropped and Prigozhin was recently able to move freely in Russia.

Video circulating online is said to show the crash. Then a smoking plane tumbles to the ground and then crashes there. According to several experts, this indicates a mid-air launch or an explosion on board. However, this is not confirmed. There was no official information about the cause of the crash. The Russian authorities initiated investigations.

However, “Grey Zone” spread the version of a targeted shooting down by the Russian Air Force. This assertion could not be verified. “Prigozhin died as a result of the actions of traitors to Russia,” the post said.

The reactions

The Ukrainian Presidential Advisor Mikhailo Podoliak explained on online networks that the plane crash was “a signal from Putin to the Russian elites” ahead of the 2024 presidential election “Be careful! Disloyalty means death”.

US President Joe Biden was “not surprised” by the possible death of the Wagner boss. “I don’t know exactly what happened, but I am not suprised“, said Biden. He was recently facing the told the Russian mercenary boss that he had to be “careful”..

The one living in exile Belarusian opposition leaderSvetlana Tikhanovskaya, the “criminal Prigozhin” will be “missed by no one” in Belarus. he be “was a murderer” and “should be remembered as such”. In addition, “his death” may “dissolve the Wagner Group’s presence in Belarus and reduce the threat to our country and our neighbors.”

Note: This article has been updated several times.

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