Kiongozi wa kundi la wapiganaji wa Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, pamoja na abiria wengine wote waliokuwemo kwenye ndege ndogo ya kukodi, wahofiwa kufa baada ya ndege hiyo kuanguka na kulipuka moto, Kaskazini Magharibi mwa jiji la Moscow. Yevgeny Prigozhin, jina lake limo kwenye orodha ya wasafiri wa ndege hiyo iliyoua abiria wote pamoja na wafanyakazi wa ndege.
Rais Biden akilielezea tukio hilo, amesema japo hajua ajali hiyo imetokeaji, lakinj hajashangazwa na kifo cha bwana Prigozhin, baada ya kuhusika na maasi. Biden, ameungana na watu wengi wanaosema kuwa Putin atakuwa nyuma ya ajali hiyo, na kwamba ajali hiyo ni ya kutengenezwa..
Jasusi wa Marekani, Leon Panetta, ameeleza kuwa kwa sasa anaamini Serikali ya Urusi itajaribu kuchukua uongozi kundi la Wagner.
Source: Aljezira, CNN, The Guardian, Telegraph
The events from Wednesday, August 23, as they happened.
www.aljazeera.com
Updates: Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin believed dead after jet crash
Video Duration 00 minutes 51 seconds00:51
Plane of Russian Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin crashes near Moscow
By Dalia Hatuqa, Edna Mohamed, Hamza Mohamed and Brian Osgood
Published On 23 Aug 202323 Aug 2023.
This live blog is now closed. Thank you for joining us. These were the updates from Wednesday, August 23, following a plane crash in Russia believed to have resulted in the death of former Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin:
Prigozhin, head of the Russian mercenary force Wagner, was listed among the passengers of a private jet that crashed north of Moscow, Russian authorities say. All 10 people aboard were killed.
:00 p.m. ET, August 23, 2023
"This is what happens when you make Putin look weak," says critic of Russian leader
From CNN staff
Bill Browder, a critic of Vladimir Putin, told CNN Wednesday he believes there is "no doubt" the Russian President is behind the crash of a plane purportedly carrying Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.
"Putin is a man who never forgives and never forgets," said Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital Management and formerly the largest foreign investor in Russia before he was expelled from the country.
"Prigozhin basically betrayed him. He was disloyal. He organized a rebellion," he added.