Elusive Operations: Wagner Group in the Central African Republic
Russia has long been an influence in Africa, especially in the Central African Republic. In 2017, when CAR requested Russia’s assistance to defend its diamond mines from rebel forces, Russia agreed to send unarmed instructors to help teach CAR’s military forces to protect these vital assets. These unarmed instructors were actually mercenaries, there to influence the government and take diamonds from the mines. Their goal was simple: continue making business deals to purchase diamonds from the mines and keep pro-Russia government officials in power.
The number of Russian mercenaries in the country has been disputed. Russia has consistently stated that there have never been more than 550 ‘instructors’ in the nation, but the United Nations believes that at times, there have been up to 2,100 mercenaries. These mercenaries are part of the Wagner Group, an elusive, private military company that has frequently had a role in conflicts on behalf of Russia. They have been seen in Syria, Libya, CAR, Ukraine, and other nations. Led by one of Putin’s close friends, Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the Wagner Group first came to prominence during Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. Because the group does not have any legal identification, it is able to operate on behalf of the Russian government without actually aligning itself with the Kremlin. This makes it easy for Russia to conduct whatever illicit operations are needed, and if anything bad becomes public knowledge, the Russian government does not have to take the blame. This makes the Wagner Group a dangerous tool, used for everything from personal protection (i.e., bodyguards) to mass killings.
While the mercenaries were originally sent to CAR to defend diamond mines from rebel forces, they have since taken on a more significant role. Not only do members of the group protect the mines, they kill anyone in the rebel mines and proceed to loot the mines themselves. According to eyewitnesses, in one instance in mid-2022, Russian-speaking soldiers flanked a mine with tanks and a helicopter, killing dozens of miners and stealing money and gold. It is unclear where the stolen resources end up in such cases, but it is clear that the government of CAR is allowing these mercenaries to act with impunity as long as the mines are taken back from rebel forces.
Wagner Group mercenaries have been known to intimidate civilians and even UN peacekeepers. They are widely feared thanks to a history of human rights violations such as random detentions, rapes, torture, executions, and more. The culture of fear that they’ve spawned means that victims of these abuses, especially rape and sexual abuse, are unlikely to come forward, as they are terrified of the group. The government of CAR has done nothing to stop the abuse, making them complicit.
In 2019, when three Russian journalists attempted to investigate the group and its operations, they were executed not far from a mine protected by mercenaries. According to the driver, the killers halted the vehicle, dragging the driver and the journalists out. The killers beat one journalist and shot him seven times. They shot the second once; the third journalist attempted to flee but was killed before he could get far. The driver managed to escape and report the murders, but the ground where the killings took place was set alite, destroying all potential evidence. Nobody has ever been arrested or prosecuted for the murders. While these executions are widely known, most other crimes attributed to the Wagner Group in CAR are never reported or publicly discussed.
Wagner Group mercenaries have been accused of storming villages and mosques where rebels were hiding alongside innocent civilians. Bystanders always end up getting caught in the crossfire, but Russian officials maintain that their instructors have never taken part in any illegal activities. These grotesque human rights violations that are continually committed by Russian mercenaries with the support of CAR’s military are a sign of a lawless regime without respect for human rights.
