Staff Reports
On Friday, Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group private military contractors, launched an armed rebellion against the Russian government and called for the resignation of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Armed Forces chief Valery Gerasimov. In response, forces loyal to Russian President Vladimir Putin clashed with the Wagner Group, and two Russian electronic warfare helicopters were shot down. It has also been reported that columns of Wagner forces armed with air defense weapons are advancing towards Moscow, and Russian airstrikes have been carried out on the M4 highway leading to the capital city.
WATCH: Fighting ERUPTS between forces loyal to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Wagner Group private military contractors after Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin called for an armed rebellion against the Russian government.
Putin is in BIG trouble.https://t.co/gsdaC5x5RN
— Proud Elephant 🇺🇸🦅 (@ProudElephantUS) June 24, 2023
This rebellion has thrown the nation into chaos and highlights a growing trend of excessive ambition and personal interests leading to betrayal. The situation has been likened to the Bolshevik revolution of 1917, and Putin himself has branded the Wagner Group leaders as “traitors.” In his address to the nation, Putin vowed to crush the rebellion and warned of severe retaliation.
🚨COUP UPDATES: Wagner with the National Guard & Russian Military TAKE OVER Russian Military HQ In Rostov
Tensions rise in Russia as the Southern Russian Military District Headquarters in Rostov is surrounded by armed military personnel.
The surrounding military personnel,… pic.twitter.com/69WUy9jvCx
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 24, 2023
BREAKING: Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin seen passing through Russian checkpoints and meeting with senior Russian military members.
In a video posted to Telegram Prigozhin announced: “We are inside the (army) headquarters, it is 7:30 am (04:30 GMT).”
“Military sites in Rostov,… pic.twitter.com/8z4miM2Q0k
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 24, 2023
🚨 Prigozhin issued his first public address from the headquarters of the Southern Military District in Rostov-on-Don, a city with a population of 1.1 million, which Wagner PMC now fully control.
English subtitles. pic.twitter.com/SDg4astcaY— Igor Sushko (@igorsushko) June 24, 2023
Here's President Putin's full speech, translated, denouncing Wagner / Prigozhin's actions as treasonous and ordering the end to the military rebellion. pic.twitter.com/EgFtNIn6pR
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) June 24, 2023
⚡️#BREAKING Photo confirms that Wagner indeed downed a Russian helicopter pic.twitter.com/WV906GgWnw
— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) June 24, 2023
BREAKING: Massive fire erupts at oil depot in Russia's Voronezh pic.twitter.com/9wULuADgpZ
— BNO News (@BNONews) June 24, 2023
Heavy Wagner convoy with active air defense in Voronezh Oblast, moving with at least one Pantsir-S1 SAM system, Strela-10 SAM system, and multiple BMPs and tanks (T-72B3, T-80BV) loaded on equipment haulers. pic.twitter.com/pWiJKf4vcq
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 24, 2023
This is not surprising, given that Prigozhin claimed that Russian casualties from the war in Ukraine far exceed reported figures and that the Russian Ministry of Defense was to blame for these casualties. It is clear that Prigozhin and his supporters are disloyal to the country and putting their own interests above the good of Russia.
The violence and instability caused by this rebellion must be condemned, and we must stand with Putin and the forces loyal to the government of Russia as they seek to restore order and maintain the nation’s security. This is a time for unity and consolidation, and we must discard any strife that our external enemies can use to subvert us from within.
