MOSCOW: The founder of Wagner mercenary force called upon Russians on Friday to resist the country’s military leadership as its decisions had led to the loss of “thousands of innocent lives”.

But Yevgeny Prigozhin insisted that his call to action was not a military coup, but rather a “march for justice”.

“This is not a military coup,” Prigozhin said in a series of audio recording posted on Telegram. “It is a march for justice. Our actions do not in any way interfere with troops.”

Prigozhin also accused Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu of ordering that 2,000 bodies of Wagner fighters be hidden in a morgue in southern Russia.

Meanwhile, Russia’s security service opened a criminal case against Yevgeny Prigozhin for inciting “armed mutiny”.

President Vladimir Putin has been briefed on the developments and “necessary measures are being taken”, Interfax news agency said, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

Brewing catastrophe
Updated 19 Jun, 2025

Brewing catastrophe

If Mr Trump makes the mistake of plunging into the fight on Israel’s behalf, the world will enter very dangerous territory.
Pension bill
19 Jun, 2025

Pension bill

IT is, indeed, a worrying conundrum. The federal government’s annual pension burden now exceeds its fiscal space...
Abandoned Karachi
19 Jun, 2025

Abandoned Karachi

THE explosive mix of decay, institutional apathy and corruption has, once again, placed Karachi among the bottom ...
Spread of hate
Updated 18 Jun, 2025

Spread of hate

HATE speech is not confined to words; in fact, there is a causal link between hateful rhetoric and real-world...
Big challenges
18 Jun, 2025

Big challenges

BALOCHISTAN’S Rs1.028tr budget, featuring a public development investment of Rs245bn and provincial surplus of...
Rampant disinformation
Updated 18 Jun, 2025

Rampant disinformation

WITH the arrival and proliferation of digital media, the creation of information is now a decentralised function,...