Vladimir Putin and Yevgeny Prigozhin have not been seen for 36 hours as Russia continues to reel from the seemingly botched Wagner Group rebellion.
Mystery surrounded the whereabouts of the two men who brought Russia to the brink of civil war and perhaps even total collapse after a day of carnage on Saturday.
And meanwhile, Prigozhin’s mercenaries shared a chilling “hush, hush” threat – sharing a picture of the warlord which could suggest their rebellion isn’t over despite the “deal” between them and the Kremlin.
Late last night, the Wagner-linked Telegram channel Grey Zone posted an eerie photo of Prigozhin shushing the camera, captioned: “Plans love silence.”
Ukraine initially posted a widespread campaign with the phrase “Plans love silence” prior to launching its much-anticipated counteroffensive.
It was also revealed last night that Russian intelligence services reportedly threatened families of Wagner soldiers before Prigozhin called off his advance.
But the Wagner boss is still nowhere to be seen, with no indication he has even arrived in Belarus as per his secret deal with the Kremlin.
Prigozhin’s press team said in a statement that he cannot be reached at the moment – but insisted he will answer all questions when he gets in touch.
The statement said: “He says ‘hi’ to everyone and will answer questions when he will get in touch normally.”
Russian outlets Meduza and RTVI both reported his whereabouts are currently “unknown”.
Prigozhin’s last message on social media was his instruction to his men to stand down to avoid bloodshed and end his fleeting rebellion.
Meanwhile, Putin is also missing – making no public appearances on Sunday beyond a pre-recorded TV interview on state media.
It was speculated he was hunkered down in his secret bunker and two of his presidential planes were seen airborne.
Putin’s TV chat – filmed days ago – saw him boast he was “confident” of the war in Ukraine. The report made no mention of the rebellion.
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