Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has shared his first video address since his aborted June mutiny.
The mercenary chief – who was sent to Belarus in the aftermath of his march on Moscow – released footage of himself speaking while wearing camouflage and holding a rifle.
It is believed from the footage that Prigozhin is in Africa. In the video, he talks about Russia making the continent “free”.
Prigozhin also describes how Wagner is tackling terrorist groups in the region and adds that the group wants to increase its presence in Africa.
He later shares details about Wagner’s recruitment in the video, which is accompanied by a telephone number for those who want to join.
The video, shared on Telegram channels affiliated with the Wagner Group, is the first video address Prigozhin has shared since he marched his mercenaries towards Moscow in late June.
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Wagner boss ‘welcomes fighters’
He called off the mutiny and his mercenaries pulled back after Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko helped broker a “deal”, which would supposedly see the businessman move to the Russian-allied country and his forces absorbed into the military.
Prigozhin – once a close confidant of Vladimir Putin – had often lambasted the likes of defence minister Sergei Shoigu and top general Valery Gerasimov in public addresses over their handling of the Ukraine invasion.
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Since the mutiny, some Wagner fighters have moved to Belarus and started training the army there.
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Analysing Putin since the Wagner mutiny
In the latest video, Prigozhin is seen standing in a desert area in camouflage and with a rifle in his hands, with armed men and a truck seen in the distance.
In the footage, he says: “The temperature is +50(C) – everything as we like. The Wagner PMC makes Russia even greater on all continents, and Africa – more free.
“Justice and happiness – for the African people, we’re making life a nightmare for ISIS and al Qaeda and other bandits.”
He then says Wagner is recruiting and the group “will fulfil the tasks that were set”.
Wagner’s forces have previously been active in parts of Africa, including the Central African Republic and Mali.
The group has been accused of using its military prowess to blackmail governments it claims to be supporting into granting lucrative mining and mineral rights – from which a lot of the group’s wealth is derived.
Wagner has also been accused by the UN and other agencies of widespread human rights abuses.
Image: Prigozhin appeared at a hotel being used for the Russia-Africa Summit event in St Petersburg in July
Supporters of the recent coup in Niger have been seen waving Russian flags, and while there has been no evidence of Wagner’s involvement, Prigzohin has hailed the move as good news and has offered the service of his fighters.
Though it is believed Prigozhin is in Africa in his latest video, it is not clear exactly where and Sky News has been unable to independently verify this.
Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.
While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.
All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.
The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.
Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.
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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.
The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.
And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.
Image: US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters
Trump holds trade deal talks – reports
It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indianand Israelirepresentatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.
The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.
Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.
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China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.
Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.
Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.
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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump
He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’
“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”
Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.
The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.
The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.
The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.
The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.
Image: Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP
Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.
The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.
Image: The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP
After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.
He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.
South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.