A group of Russian militants fighting on the Ukrainian side has called on "Wagner Group" mercenaries to change their stance and join their ranks to avenge Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin and their commander Dmitry Utkin.
Russian air authorities reported that the private plane carrying Prigozhin, Utkin, and the eight others has crashed north of Moscow, leaving no survivors.
The commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC), Denis Kapustin, stated that mercenaries now face a critical choice—they can continue serving the Russian Ministry of Defence, following orders blindly, or choose to seek revenge. The commander mentioned that seeking revenge would require switching to the Ukrainian side.
Two months before the plane crash, Prigozhin and his Wagner mercenaries rebelled, seizing control of the southern city of Rostov and advancing towards Moscow, only to turn back 200 kilometers from the capital.
Russia has begun an investigation into the plane crash, however, the final findings are unlikely to shake the widespread belief that Prigozhin was murdered for planning a mutiny.
On Thursday, Reuters cited two American officials stating that the plane might have been hit by a surface-to-air missile. However, there's currently no evidence to substantiate this claim.
After 24 hours of silence, Russian President Putin offered "sincere condolences" to the families of the 10 victims on board. He also praised Prigozhin as a "talented businessman."
A year ago, the far-right Russian citizen Kapustin founded an armed group. Since its inception, it has supported fighting on the Ukrainian side, claiming to have carried out multiple military raids on Russian border regions.
In his speech to the Wagner mercenaries, Kapustin stated that he would continue moving towards Moscow, aiming to end the bloody special military operation, using the term "Ukrainian invasion" as officially described by Russia.
