‘Assassination’ of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin could plunge Russia into civil war, jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny warns

The apparent assassination of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin could plunge Russia into civil war, jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny warned yesterday.

He accused Vladimir Putin of ordering the assassination of the mercenary group’s boss months after he led an aborted revolt against the Kremlin.

The defense ministry said there was “no definitive evidence yet” that Prigozhin was in the private jet that crashed after an onboard explosion, but that it was “highly likely”.

It was warned that his death would have “a profoundly destabilizing effect” on his mercenary group, which operates in hotspots around the world, including Ukraine, Syria and several African countries.

Wagner soldiers have threatened to storm the Kremlin and retaliate for the presumed deaths of their leader, his second-in-command Dmitry Utkin and several other key lieutenants.

Moscow has denied it was behind the plane crash, saying the allegations it was involved were a “complete lie.”

Russian investigators say they have found the flight recorder of the Embraer Legacy plane, which crashed to the ground 33 minutes after its flight from Moscow on Wednesday, but have not yet confirmed the identities of the ten bodies recovered from the wreckage.

The US Department of Defense said its preliminary assessment suggested the crash was deliberately caused by an explosion on the plane.

Some of Wagner’s supporters claim that a bomb was placed in a wine box. Mr Navalny – who survived an assassination attempt in 2020 – accused the Russian president of ordering the explosion, which also killed three flight crew members.

In a message to his supporters, he described the crash as “a genuine act of terrorism” and said it would make Prigozhin a martyr to his supporters. “It is from these very ingredients that the dish called ‘civil war’ is made,” the imprisoned opposition leader added.

Mr Navalny collapsed on board a plane in Russia in 2020 after being poisoned with a nerve agent.

He was later jailed on charges of fraud, despite calls for his immediate release due to claims that these were politically motivated.

Prigozhin’s supporters had urged him to challenge Putin for the presidency, prompting claims that the Russian leader ordered his assassination to eliminate him and destroy his group of mercenaries.

Prigozhin’s failed mutiny when he ordered his troops to march on Moscow in June was widely believed to have sealed his fate, and his death came two months to the day after the aborted revolt.

The future of his Wagner group remained unclear, but the Defense Department said his presumed death left a “leadership vacuum.”

In an intelligence briefing, it added: ‘Prigozhin’s demise would almost certainly have a profoundly destabilizing effect on the Wagner Group.

“His personal traits of hyperactivity, exceptional audacity, drive for results and extreme brutality are imbued with Wagner and it is unlikely that any successor will match him.”

In Russia, the Kremlin announced that all paramilitary fighters would now be required to take an oath by the Russian flag.

They must “pledge loyalty to the Russian Federation… strictly follow the orders of their commanders and superiors and conscientiously fulfill their obligations,” according to a new decree signed by Putin.