A Russian security source stated that Wagner fighters also captured military facilities in Voronezh, located about 500 kilometers south of Moscow.
Today, Saturday, the Russian army began military operations in the Voronezh region to respond to Wagner forces, which had taken control of it earlier in the day. Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to crush what he referred to as an armed rebellion after Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin stated today that he had seized a southern city as part of an effort to overthrow the military leadership.
This dramatic turn of events, whose details remain unclear, appears to be the biggest internal crisis Putin has faced since he ordered a large-scale invasion of Ukraine, which he called a "special military operation," in February of last year.
Putin, in a televised address, said, "Excessive ambition and private interests have led to treason," describing the rebellion as "a stab in the back." He added: "This is a blow to Russia and our people. Our actions will be harsh to defend the homeland against such a threat."
Putin promised that "anyone who intentionally chose the path of treason... who orchestrated an armed rebellion... who resorted to blackmail and terrorist methods... will be punished and will be liable under the law and to our people."
Prigozhin had demanded Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to come meet him in Rostov, a city near the border with Ukraine that he claimed to have captured. Prigozhin vowed to overthrow them due to what he called catastrophic leadership in the war against Ukraine. He stated he had 25,000 fighters "who will restore justice" and alleged, without providing evidence, that the army had killed a significant number of his Wagner forces in an airstrike, an allegation the Defense Ministry denied.
Wagner, under Prigozhin's leadership, captured the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut last month and has publicly accused Shoigu and Gerasimov for months of incompetence and depriving Wagner of ammunition and support.
On Friday, it appeared the conflict had entered a new phase as Prigozhin claimed that the official reason for Putin's invasion of Ukraine 16 months ago was based on lies concocted by senior army officers. In a video, Prigozhin said, "The war was necessary for Shoigu to become a marshal... to allow him to obtain again the 'Hero of Russia' award." He asserted, "The war was not necessary to disarm Ukraine or to eliminate Nazism there," referring to the justifications used by Putin for the war.
In one of many voice messages sent during the night, he clarified that he was moving against the army. He said, "Those who destroyed our sons... who destroyed the souls of tens of thousands of Russian soldiers... will be punished. I ask no one to resist." He declared, "There are 25,000 of us, and we will find out why the chaos in the country exists," vowing to destroy any checkpoints or air forces in Wagner's path. He later stated that his men had engaged in clashes with regular soldiers and shot down a helicopter.
A Russian security source confirmed that Wagner fighters had also taken control of military facilities in Voronezh, situated about 500 kilometers south of Moscow.
The Federal Security Service of Russia opened a criminal case against Prigozhin for armed rebellion, stating that his remarks amounted to "calls to ignite civil armed conflict on Russian territory." They added, "We urge... fighters not to make irreversible mistakes, to stop any coercive actions against the Russian people, and to refrain from carrying out Prigozhin’s criminal and treasonous orders and take steps to arrest him."
The official TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying that all major Russian security agencies were reporting to Putin "around the clock." Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced via his Telegram channel that authorities had tightened security measures in Moscow. A White House spokesman stated that President Joe Biden had been briefed on the situation.
Military Convoy
Around 2 a.m. (11:00 p.m. GMT), Prigozhin posted a message on Telegram stating that his fighters were in Rostov and ready "to move forward" against senior officers and destroy anyone in their way.
Around 5 a.m. (2:00 a.m. GMT), the administration of Voronezh, located on the M-4 highway between the regional capital Rostov-on-Don and Moscow, announced on Telegram that a military convoy was on the highway and urged residents to avoid using it.
Unverified footage circulated on social media displayed a convoy of various military vehicles, including at least one tank and one armored vehicle being transported on trucks. It was unclear where the convoy was or if the covered trucks contained fighters. Some of the vehicles were flying the Russian flag.
Footage aired by Rostov-on-Don-based channels showed armed individuals in military uniforms combing the regional police headquarters on foot, while tanks were stationed outside the Southern Military District's headquarters.
Prigozhin denied attempting a military coup. He claimed to have moved his fighters from Ukraine to Rostov and showed a video aired by a pro-Wagner channel of himself apparently speaking with two military leaders at the Southern Military District headquarters in Russia. In the video, he is seen telling the commanders, "We have arrived here and want to meet the Chief of the General Staff and Shoigu... If they do not come, we will be here... We will besiege the city of Rostov and head towards Moscow."
Local Russian officials reported that the military convoy was indeed on the main highway linking southern Russia to Moscow, urging residents to avoid that route. Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev, who later appeared with Prigozhin in the video from Rostov-on-Don, called on the Wagner chief in a previous video to reconsider his actions. He stated, "Only the president has the right to appoint the senior command of the armed forces, and you are trying to encroach on his authority."
Unverified footage posted on a pro-Wagner Telegram channel showed a scene in a forest where small fires were blazing, and trees appeared to have been violently uprooted. There was apparently one corpse, but there was no direct evidence of any attack. The scene was accompanied by commentary stating, "A missile attack was launched on the camps of the Wagner private military company. Here there are many casualties. According to witnesses, the strike came from behind, meaning it was carried out by the Ministry of Defense's army." The Defense Ministry stated that these claims were false.
