The Lantern Keeper

Before the full-scale war in Ukraine and their failed attempt to march on Moscow, the mercenary group had already faced accusations of committing atrocities in Africa.

 

According to a recent investigative report, the Wagner Group is responsible for a series of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Central African Republic (CAR).

 

Initially, the group led Russian attacks in parts of Ukraine, but later they appeared to turn against the Kremlin due to a falling out with the Russian military over the conduct of the war.

 

The Washington-based anti-corruption organization, The Sentry, has uncovered evidence that Yevgeny Prigozhin's mercenary group has been involved in "perfecting a nightmarish blueprint for state capture" in CAR, aiming to exploit the country's national resources, particularly gold and diamonds.

 

Over the past five years, Wagner soldiers and militiamen have reportedly undergone training involving brutal techniques of torture and killing, including dismemberment, strangulation, immolation, and other ultraviolent methods.

 

Through close cooperation with CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, the Wagner Group has gained significant control over the country's political and military leadership, as well as a substantial influence over its economy.

 

The report also reveals that part of Wagner's training involved a practice known as "sweeping" or "cleansing," which involved killing indiscriminately, including women and children, as confirmed by sources within the Central African military.

 

According to military sources, villagers are targeted and either buried or discarded in the bush.

 

Members of the presidential guard who received the training mentioned that it was provided by a Russian instructor and included commando techniques, aggressive interrogation, and acts of violence and torture.

 

The training, lasting from one to six months, encompasses firearms training, hand-to-hand combat, espionage, interrogation, and torture techniques, as outlined in the report.

 

Exploiting President Touadéra's increasing need for security and protection, Wagner has tightened its grip on the CAR's economic resources, establishing a transnational network of covert companies and operations extending from Madagascar, Cameroon, and Sudan back to Moscow.

 

While Wagner commanders and President Touadéra justify the group's presence as a means to combat armed rebel groups and protect the regime, The Sentry's investigation reveals that Wagner has assumed command and control over the government's armed forces.

 

In an audio clip shared on his Telegram channel, Wagner group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed that his convoy had been targeted by Russian artillery fire and military aircraft. This message followed Vladimir Putin's accusation of the Wagner mercenaries' involvement in an "armed mutiny."

 

Subsequently, orders were given to carry out "cleansing" campaigns aimed at massacring entire communities that might impede the group's extraction operations.

 

Soldiers involved in these activities have stated that Wagner's intention is to instill fear and terrorize not only the rebels but also the general population, including soldiers and militiamen under their control.

 

Upon the group's arrival in early 2018, the CAR was already reeling from decades of deadly crises that the UN and Western nations had failed to adequately address.

 

Taking advantage of this situation, Wagner has rapidly emerged as one of the most powerful forces in the CAR, despite having relatively few personnel.

 

Their operations in the CAR are just one facet of the private army's activities across the continent, which extend to numerous countries in Africa, including Libya, Sudan, Mali, Mozambique, Madagascar, and Burkina Faso.

 

The Wagner Mercenary Group is known to have a significant presence in Syria and other distant locations.