The owner of the Russian private military campaign, “Wagner” Evgeny Prigozhin, demanded to recognize France as a state sponsor of terrorism after the head of the so-called “Russian House” (RD) in the Central African Republic (CAR) received a package with explosives.
An assassination attempt on the head of the Russian House in the Central African Republic, Dmitry Sitoy, preceded Prigozhin’s statement.
It was reported that the Russians received an anonymous package, during the opening of which an explosion occurred. Sytyi was hospitalized in Bangui, his condition is assessed as severe, but his life is not in danger. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov called what happened to Sytyi a “terrorist attack.”
According to Prigozhin’s statement, distributed by his press service, in mid-November, Sytyi received a package with a photo of his son, who lives in France. The parcel was accompanied by a note, which, according to the press service of the Wagnerian, said that the next time the head of the “Russian House” would receive the head of his son if “Russians do not flee from the African continent.”
The parcel with explosives, sent on December 16, was accompanied by a note with the words:
“This is for you from all the French, and the Russians will flee Africa.”
“I have already appealed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation to initiate the procedure of declaring France a state sponsor of terrorism, as well as conducting a thorough investigation of the terrorist methods of France and its Western allies – the United States and others”, – said the leader of the PMC.
Details of information about the event
Wagner’s PMC in CAR, where militants train and fight with local armed forces, is a cause for concern. CNN investigations have linked the Wagner PMC to the lucrative diamond trade in Central Africa.
Sitoy is called the founder of a diamond company linked to Prigozhin’s business empire.
Prigozhin accused France of involvement in the attack on Sitogo.
“On February 1, 2022, the Russian House was opened in the Central African Republic, which for hundreds of years was under the suppression of the French, who destroyed the population and plundered the wealth of the Central African Republic. It was headed by the patriot of Russia and the CAR Dmitry Sytyi,” he said.
“On November 11, Sytyi received a parcel from Togo with a photo of his son, who lives in France. It contained a note that he would receive his son’s head next time if “Russians do not flee from the African continent” and do not open the doors to the French.”
The Russian Foreign Ministry said it “strongly condemns this criminal act, which is aimed at obstructing the activities of the Russian House in Bangui and, more broadly, at harming the successful development of friendly relations between our two countries.”
“We hope that as a result of an operational investigation by the competent authorities of the CAR, those guilty of organizing and committing this crime will be identified and punished,” the ministry added.
PMC “Wagner” and a known dirty case
Earlier, Prigozhin sent a sledgehammer to the European Parliament. The sledgehammer became associated with the PMC “Wagner” and extrajudicial executions arranged by its members during the war in Syria. In 2017, they filmed a video of a man being beaten to death with a sledgehammer. The Arab press claims that the executed man was a deserter from the army of Bashar al-Assad.
