Prigozhin plane crash: What happened?

Published

1 year ago

August 24, 2023

admin

A private jet with 10 people on board has crashed in Russia – with the man who led a short-lived mutiny against the country’s top brass on the passenger list.

Russian authorities said Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin boarded the flight, though there has been no absolute confirmation of his death.

The Russian news agency Interfax said 10 bodies had been recovered from the site.

Footage from the scene – about 185 miles north of Moscow – shows flames leaping from the wreckage.

Here’s what we know so far.

What happened?

A private Embraer Legacy aircraft was travelling from Moscow to St Petersburg when it crashed.

Russian authorities said there were no survivors.

Russian state-owned TASS news agency reported seven passengers and three crew were on board the Embraer aircraft and were all killed.

According to Reuters, there are reports they were attending a meeting with officials from Russia’s defence ministry.

A Telegram channel affiliated with the Wagner Group has said Prigozhin was killed in the plane crash. It called him a hero and a patriot who had died at the hands of unidentified people described as “traitors to Russia”.

The plane came down near the village of Kuzhenkino Tver – and unconfirmed reports suggest it belonged to Prigozhin.

Who was on board?

A list of those on board has been published by Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency.

Russia’s civil aviation authority said Prigozhin was on the passenger list, and later added that he was travelling with Wagner commander Dmitry Utkin.

Utkin was Prigozhin’s right-hand man – a shadowy figure covered in Nazi tattoos including a swastika and lightning bolts.

Prigozhin’s security chief Valeriy Chekalov was also said to be on the flight – with the other four passengers named as Sergey Propustin, Yevgeny Makaryan, Alexander Totmin and Nikolay Matuseev.

Sky’s Moscow correspondent Diana Magnay says that, if the deaths are confirmed: “That is essentially the top echelons of the Wagner Group taken out in one fell swoop – and it is exactly two months to the day that Prigozhin launched his very short-lived mutiny.”

The crew members on the doomed flight have been named as commander Aleksei Levshin, co-pilot Rustam Karimov and flight attendant Kristina Raspopova.

What could have caused the crash?

Our military analyst Sean Bell said plane crashes are traditionally in bad weather – and conditions were clear at the time.

Referring to footage of the incident, he added: “This aircraft looks as if it’s completely out of control – it’s spiralling down, there are vapour trails coming from it – all of which indicates it’s had some sort of catastrophic failure in the air.”

Magnay says there have been reports of a second plane behind the one that crashed that was zig-zagging through the sky.

Security and defence analyst Professor Michael Clarke says the way the plane came down doesn’t indicate there was a bomb on board – but it did look like an aircraft that had been hit by something outside that did enough damage to wreck the controls.

Flightradar24 says data from the aircraft shows it descended sharply about 33 minutes into the flight.

Who is Yevgeny Prigozhin?

Once a close confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prigozhin founded Wagner – a private military company whose fighters were on the ground in Ukraine.

But in recent months, Prigozhin had been a vocal critic of Russia’s defence ministry, as well as top generals, in their handling of the invasion.

He led a short-lived mutiny against the country’s top military brass in June – and at the time, he was described by Mr Putin as a “traitor”.

The rebellion ended when Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko stepped in to broker a deal, with Prigozhin agreeing to relocate to Belarus.

What has happened since the rebellion?

Earlier this week, Prigozhin made a video address for the first time since the aborted mutiny.

Wearing camouflage and holding a rifle, he appeared to be in Africa – and talked about Russia making the continent “free”.

Prigozhin spoke of how Wagner was tackling terrorist groups in the region, and “making life a nightmare for ISIS and al Qaeda and other bandits”.

His mercenary group has been accused by the UN and other agencies of widespread human rights abuses.

Where is Vladimir Putin?

Amid reports that Prigozhin is dead, Mr Putin was attending a concert in Kursk.

The event is dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Soviet troops’ victory in the Battle of Kursk.

Soldiers joined the president on stage, with Mr Putin pinning medals on troops.

The Russian president has also been participating in the BRICS summit – appearing virtually alongside leaders from Brazil, India, China and South Africa.

What has been the reaction to the plane crash?

Boris Bondarev, a former Russian diplomat, told Sky News that the death of Prigozhin would benefit Mr Putin.

And Christopher Steele, a former British intelligence officer, said he believed such an incident involving the mercenary chief was “inevitable” following his failed revolt.

Mr Steele claims a contract had been put out on Prigozhin by members of Russia’s business community in recent weeks.

Sean Bell has said the crash could be a ploy to let the Wagner boss live peacefully in exile.

“This might have been an engineered story for Prigozhin to slip quietly away and live in exile somewhere, under a wig and with a degree of privacy,” he added.

US President Joe Biden, who is on holiday in California, has been briefed.

Adrienne Watson, America’s national security spokesperson, said: “We have seen the reports. If confirmed, no one should be surprised.”

And Alicia Kearns, who chairs the UK’s Foreign Affairs Committee, told Sky News that the speed at which the Russian government confirmed Prigozhin was on the passenger list “should tell us everything we need to know”.

Reports have suggested that the plane was shot down by Russian air defence forces, and the British MP says this suggests Mr Putin is “sending a very loud message”.

A UK government spokesperson said the Foreign Office is “monitoring the situation closely”.

Was this an act of revenge from Putin?

Many see Prigozhin’s reported death as a response from the Kremlin to Wagner’s brief armed rebellion against the Russian military.

General Lord Richard Dannatt, ex-chief of the British army, told Sky News Mr Putin was “most likely” behind the plane crash.

He added that even if it wasn’t ordered by the Russian president himself, “it was by someone who knows what Putin would have wished”.

Sky’s international affairs editor Dominic Waghorn said “treason does not pay” and “Putin has never tolerated traitors”.

“He will hope the presumed assassination will draw a line under that embarrassing mutiny and deter any other threats and that it will bolster his power which has been weakened by the failed coup.”

What does this mean for the war in Ukraine?

Prof Clarke says that – if Prigozhin is dead – it will have a “marginal” effect on the conflict, but it will show that Russia is a “gangster state”.

He explained: “It is run in a gangster way from the top, right through the very bottom with corruption down at the lowest possible level.”

The security and defence analyst expects more details to emerge in the coming hours – and said caution is needed.

“It is not obvious he is dead at the moment, he probably is, but there is still some plausible idea this might be some sort of setup,” he added.

The crash has been reported on Russian state television.

World

Musk sued over buying Twitter shares at artificially low prices by US finance regulator

Published

11 hours ago

January 15, 2025

admin

Musk sued over buying Twitter shares at artificially low prices by US finance regulator

Elon Musk is being sued for failing to disclose his purchase of more than 5% of Twitter stock in a timely fashion.

The world’s richest man bought the stock in March 2022 and the complaint by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said the delay allowed him to continue buying Twitter stock at artificially low prices.

In papers filed in Washington DC federal court, the SEC said the move allowed Mr Musk to underpay by at least $150m (£123m).

The commission wants Mr Musk to pay a civil fine and give up profits he was not entitled to.

In response to the lawsuit a lawyer for the multi-billionaire said: “Mr Musk has done nothing wrong and everyone sees this sham for what it is.”

An SEC rule requires investors to disclose within 10 calendar days when they cross a 5% ownership threshold.

The SEC said Mr Musk did not disclose his state until 4 April 2022, 11 days after the deadline – by which point he owned more than 9% of Twitter’s shares.

Twitter’s share price rose by more than 27% following Mr Musk’s disclosure, the SEC added.

Mr Musk later purchased Twitter for $44bn (£36bn) in October 2022 and renamed the social media site X.

Since the election of Donald Trump, Mr Musk has been put in charge of leading a newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) alongside former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

The president-elect said the department would work to reduce government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies.

World

Hamas accepts Gaza peace deal as Israeli official says agreement is close but ‘not there yet’

Published

11 hours ago

January 15, 2025

admin

Hamas accepts Gaza peace deal as Israeli official says agreement is close but 'not there yet'

US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.

Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives resumed in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was “on the brink” on Monday.

A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.

Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their “closest point” yet to a ceasefire deal.

Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.

An Israeli official said a deal is close but “we are not there” yet.

More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

Read more:
What’s in the proposed deal?

Biden hails possibility of agreement

President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.

“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.

“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”

Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.

Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions

Trump: ‘We’re very close’

President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.

“We’re very close to getting it done and they have to get it done,” he said.

“If they don’t get it done, there’s going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.

“And they will get it done. And I understand there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place.”

Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal

Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was “close, but we are not there”.

They accused Hamas of previously “dictating, not negotiating” but said this has changed in the last few weeks.

“Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal,” they added.

Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.

Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was “not in a rush” to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF “started to dismantle the Shia axis”.

Iran ‘weaker than it’s been in decades’

Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.

“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” the president said.

Mr Biden claimed America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.

“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.

“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”

The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.

World

Gaza ceasefire: What does the draft agreement say and how many hostages would be released?

Published

11 hours ago

January 15, 2025

admin

Gaza ceasefire: What does the draft agreement say and how many hostages would be released?

A draft ceasefire deal on the table between Israel and Hamas would see 33 hostages set free and a phased withdrawal of IDF forces from parts of Gaza.

President Joe Biden said an agreement to stop the fighting was “on the brink” and high level negotiations between the two sides resumed in Qatar on Tuesday.

The deal would see a number of things happen in a first stage, with negotiations for the second stage beginning in the third week of the ceasefire.

It would also allow a surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been devastated by more than a year of war.

Details of what the draft proposal entails have been emerging on Tuesday, reported by Israeli and Palestinian officials.

Hostages to be returned

In the first stage of the potential ceasefire, 33 hostages would be set free.

These include women (including female soldiers), children, men over the age of 50, wounded and sick.

Israel believes most of these hostages are alive but there has not been any official confirmation from Hamas.

In return for the release of the hostages, Israel would free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

People serving long sentences for deadly attacks would be included in this but Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October attack would not be released.

An arrangement to prevent Palestinian “terrorists” from going back to the West Bank would be included in the deal, an anonymous Israeli official said.

Phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza

The agreement also includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with IDF troops remaining in the border perimeter to defend Israeli border towns and villages.

Security arrangements would be implemented at the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land that runs along the border between Egypt and Gaza – with Israel withdrawing from parts of it after the first few days of the deal.

The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza would start to work gradually to allow the crossing of people who are sick and other humanitarian cases out of Gaza for treatment.

Unarmed North Gaza residents would be allowed to return to their homes, with a mechanism introduced to ensure no weapons are moved there.

“We will not leave the Gaza Strip until all our hostages are back home,” the Israeli official said.

What will happen to Gaza in the future?

There is less detail about the future of Gaza – from how it will be governed, to any guarantees that this agreement will bring a permanent end to the war.

“The only thing that can answer for now is that we are ready for a ceasefire,” the Israeli official said.

“This is a long ceasefire and the deal that is being discussed right now is for a long one. There is a big price for releasing the hostages and we are ready to pay this price.”

The international community has said Gaza must be run by Palestinians, but there has not been a consensus about how this should be done – and the draft ceasefire agreement does not seem to address this either.

In the past, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It also previously rejected the possibility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited governing powers in the West Bank, from taking over the administration of Gaza.

Since the beginning of its military campaign in Gaza, Israel has also said it would retain security control over the territory after the fighting ends.