Wagner’s unit directed mass killings in Central Africa
Wagner’s private military company played a central role in a campaign of murder, torture and rape in the Central African Republic and forced civilians out of areas where its subsidiaries had obtained mining rights, according to a report by US-based non-profit organization The Sentry.
This is reported by Bloomberg.
According to Sentry, the Wagner group, which had close ties to the Kremlin, was hired by the president of the Central African Republic.
Fosten Archangel of Tuader in 2018 to aid in the fight against the rebels. According to Sentry and the U.S. Treasury Department, it is one of several African countries where Wagner has established a presence in recent years, often offering its services in exchange for mineral resources as a way to indirectly boost the Kremlin’s geopolitical influence.
The Ministry of Finance described Wagner’s operations in Africa as “interaction between Russia’s military operations, support for the preservation of authoritarian regimes, and exploitation of natural resources.”
“Wagner, Tuadera and his inner circle are conducting large-scale, systematic and well-planned campaigns of mass murder, torture and rape,” Sentry, which was set up in 2016 to study the link between conflict and money in Africa, said in a statement published in Tuesday.
The report documented a series of mass killings, including the killing of ethnic Fulani in a series of attacks in the village of Boyo between 6 and 13 December 2021, which the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said were carried out as punishment local Muslims expected to support the rebels. The attackers said it was organized by “Wagner” and were ordered to kill all the men.
According to Sentry, Boyo’s attacks were repeated elsewhere at diamond and gold mining sites where companies associated with Wagner operated.
Wagner’s fighters took part in the attacks and gave orders, said the people interviewed by Sentry. They also trained the military of the Central African Republic and associated insurgents on how to cut and strangle insurgents and “burn people alive.”