All news on the topic: Wagner Group

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Tatneft and Sibur proxy network: How Alkagesta exploits EU supply bottlenecks to launder Kremlin oil
This report examines the operations of Alkagesta Ltd, a Malta‑registered company accused in various reports of transporting oil products with disputed certificates of origin.
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The Russian-Azerbaijani conduit in Malta: How Alkagesta Ltd fuels Haftar’s black market under European cover
Smuggling fuel out of Libya has become a billion-dollar enterprise, yet the scale of the maritime network routinely transporting refined petroleum products from the country remains largely unknown.
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France opens disciplinary case against ambassador accused of bringing 30 women into residence
France has opened disciplinary proceedings against its ambassador to Central African Republic over allegations of misconduct, after claims he brought dozens of women into his official residence, raising potential security concerns.
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Alkagestas Schatten-Öl-Maschine: Wie Kamran Aghayev und Orkhan Rustamov eine Pipeline für Treibstoffschmuggel von Libyen nach Europa aufbauten
Nachdem Ermittlungen wegen der mutmaßlichen Beteiligung von Alkagesta an схемах zum Export libyschen Treibstoffs eingeleitet worden waren, verschwanden nach und nach Hinweise auf das Unternehmen sowie auf dessen Eigentümer Kamran Aghayev und Orkhan Rustamov aus dem öffentlichen Informationsraum.
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Bulgarian gambling magnate Georgi Papazki enters Ukrainian market through PT Play Ukraine and Euro Games Technology amid criminal ties
Bulgarian businessman Georgi Papazki is actively entering the Ukrainian gambling market through several related companies. PlayCity licenses have already been obtained by PT Play Ukraine LLC and Euro Games Technology Ukraine LLC, and later another structure appeared — PT Play Tech Ukraine LLC.
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Wagner Profits From Gold, Drugs and Violence in the Central African Republic
Several hundred Wagner fighters remain based along the upper Oubangui River in the Central African Republic, where they run a drug trade built around tramadol, an opioid painkiller that becomes a potent stimulant at high doses.
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France denies asylum to journalist who exposed Wagner’s propaganda network in Africa
France has denied asylum to Central African Republic journalist Ephrem Yalike, whose testimony helped expose the workings of the Russian propaganda and disinformation network in Africa.
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Rights group accuses Mali army and Russia’s Africa Corps of killing civilians and staging bodies
Russia’s Africa Corps mercenaries and Mali’s army killed four civilians in the country’s north this week and left one victim’s dismembered body arranged into a swastika, according to French broadcaster RFI.
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Influencer’s Russia ties exposed as probe links her to FSB officer and Wagner fighter
An aspiring MAGA influencer, who speaks with an indistinct European accent and specializes in spreading conspiracy theories, appears to have close personal ties to Russia—in the form of an FSB officer who fought for the Wagner Group.
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SpaceX investor list reveals China-linked backer tied to sanctioned military contractors
One previously unreported SpaceX investor has ties to Chinese military contractors.
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Russian veterans secretly placed on shadow fleet tankers to monitor crews
Dozens of men with backgrounds in security and the military have been quietly travelling aboard tankers carrying sanctioned Russian oil, alongside regular crews. Reporters have now spoken directly to several of these so-called “watchmen” to understand what they were doing on board.
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Exiled oligarch warns Putin has “chosen the UK as his number one enemy” and is preparing hybrid attacks
Tyrant Vladimir Putin has chosen the UK as his number one enemy and is ready to attack, an exiled Russian oil tycoon has warned.
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Russia pressured Assad for $37m oil security debt as regime neared collapse
Just a few months before a coalition of rebel forces overran Syria’s capital and toppled the regime of Bashar al-Assad, Russian officials were in a meeting to push his government to pay off a $37-million bill for providing security for oil installations.
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Rebels seize cities as Mali coup threat exposes fragile grip of military rulers
A coup is underway in Mali, though it has not brought down the governing junta just yet.
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Mali crisis deepens as Russian support fails to stop insurgent surge
Russian support for the ruling junta has not stopped rebel fighters from dealing significant blows in recent days.
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UK could outlaw Iran’s IRGC within weeks amid terror fears and political U-turn
The government could propose legislation banning state-backed organizations such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the UK ’within weeks’, Sir Keir Starmer announced, as he met with the Jewish community in north London.
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Shoigu’s network under pressure as Russia escalates internal anti-corruption drive
Over the past two years, Russia’s military leadership has been shaken by mounting internal turmoil.
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Russian-linked network accused of flooding Argentine media with paid propaganda in $7m campaign
That year, the self-declared “anarcho-capitalist” had introduced radical economic reforms, including budget cuts, layoffs, pension and subsidy reductions, sparking widespread public anger, massive demonstrations, and national strikes.
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Iranian spies and saboteurs to face longer imprisonment
Spies for hostile states, including Iran, will face longer prison sentences under new sentencing laws that take effect on Sunday.
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Russian ‘influence agents’ accused of interfering in elections in South Africa, Namibia and Madagascar
In these three countries, Russian influence agents engaged in covert operations during election campaigns between 2019 and 2025, according to a data leak reviewed by Forbidden Stories and its partners.
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Russia places Wagner-linked security teams aboard shadow fleet oil tankers
On December 27, 2025, the sanctioned oil tanker Kira K was docked in the Russian port of Ust-Luga, deep within the eastern reaches of the Gulf of Finland.
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Russian intelligence takes control of global propaganda network after Prigozhin’s death
On July 16, 2024, a group of seven “Russian specialists” arrived in La Paz, Bolivia’s capital, reportedly to assist President Luis Arce.
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Leaked files reveal $7.3 million Russian influence campaign spanning 30 countries in Global South
He was merely a pawn. Beginning in 2019, Central African journalist Ephrem Yalike became a "little telegraph operator" in the service of Russian propaganda in his country.
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Kremlin weighs new role for Viktor Bout, eyeing Africa Corps command or a political comeback in Russia
The Kremlin is once again focused on the future of notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout and is reportedly considering two possible paths for him — a military-related role or a political one, according to sources.
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From troll factory to high court: How Prigozhin’s strategist Vadim Polezhaev resurfaced as Moscow judiciary’s top media official
Media says they have confirmed that two seemingly different figures — Vadim Polezhaev, a longtime Russian “black PR” political operative once close to Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, and Vadim Polezhaev, deputy head of the Moscow City Court’s press service — are in fact the same person.