Russia arresting Wagner members in Syria – reports
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – According to numerous reports, Russian forces in Syria may be arresting Wagner Group operatives in the country after last weekend’s insurrection in southern Russia by the militia’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Newsweek, citing several sources, says Wagner Group members were arrested at the Khmeimim Air Base, on Syria’s coast, as the munity unfolded in Russia. The arrested included a colonel and two lieutenant colonels.
A day later, further arrests followed in Damascus, Suwayda, Deir ez-Zor, and in al-Suqaylabiyah, in Syria’s Ghab Plain in Hama Governorate. According to the New Arab, these arrests were conducted by Russia’s Military Police (MP) in conjunction with Syrian intelligence services. Other sources report that police visited Wagner headquarters in Deir ez-Zor, Hama and Damascus.
Dimitry Uktin, Wagner’s co-founder, denied any arrests had been conducted in Syria.
Uncertainty surrounds Wagner’s future after last week’s events. The group has been active in Syria for the past few years, especially in combating ISIS in the desert between Deir ez-Zor and Palmyra, as well as recruiting Syrians for the war in Ukraine. The mercenary group also boasts over considerable military, economic and political ties in over a dozen African countries.
A political analyst quoted by Newsweek says Russian President Vladimir Putin may be preparing to confiscate Wagner’s assets via corruption charges. Whether Russia has the means or the will to take over much of the security operations Wagner has conducted over the past decade is unclear.