Amid an alleged rebellion, the Russian Wagner mercenary group on Saturday claimed to have seized military facilities in the cities of Rostov and Voronezh, despite President Vladimir Putin’s order to neutralise the mercenaries. In a social media post, the group’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said that he was in Rostov-on-Don, in southern Russia close to the Ukraine border, and that his forces have control of military facilities and the airfield, reported international media.

He pledged to blockade Rostov and move on to Moscow if Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and top general Valery Gerasimov did not meet him in the city, where Russia’s Southern Military District is headquartered. The Wagner group also claimed that it had taken control of Russian military facilities in the second city of Voronezh, saying “the army switches to the side of the people”. Earlier, the Governor of Voronezh oblast said that “a convoy of military equipment is moving along the M-4 Don Federal Highway”, which connects the city and Rostov-on-Don.