The Wagner group said the Russian mercenaries who were captured were killed in Mali, rebels deny the claims, reports UNN citing Reuters.
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Wagner's mercenary group has told the family of a Russian fighter captured alive in Mali that he is now dead, according to text messages seen by Reuters, contradicting information provided by the Tuareg rebel group that was holding him.
Alexander Efremov was one of two Russian prisoners captured alive by Tuareg rebels after a deadly desert battle in which dozens of Wagner fighters were killed in late July.
His brother Yevgeny said Wagner called to report his death. He posted the news this week in a Telegram chat room used by relatives of mercenaries involved in the battle to share information.
“Imagine the mental state of Nick's wife after that call,” Yevgeny Efremov told the group, referring to his call sign brother.
Yefremov did not respond to a request for comment. But relatives of three other fighters who were reported missing told Reuters that they had received similar calls from Wagner.
However, a spokesman for the Tuareg rebel group denied Wagner's claim, telling Reuters that the two Russian captives, as well as Malian army prisoners captured in the same battle, were still alive.
“All our captives are alive,” said Mohamed El Maouloud Ramadan, a spokesman for the Tuareg organization known as the Permanent Strategic Framework for Peace, Security and Development (CSP). “Wagner are liars”.
The reason for the conflicting reports is unclear. The Tuareg group has refused to provide evidence that its captives are alive, while Wagner has not found the bodies of its fighters killed in the battle near the Algerian border, leaving relatives without clear evidence either way.
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Wagner initially reported that most of the fighters involved in the desert battle were missing. Using publicly available data, facial recognition software and interviews with relatives, Reuters has identified the names of 31 mercenaries missing or captured after the battle with the Tuareg.
Although Wagner acknowledged heavy casualties in the Mali ambush, he provided no casualty figures. The Malian army, which fought alongside the Russians, also gave no casualty figures.