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07-09-2023
LONDON: The UK government is likely to declare the Russian mercenary group Wagner a terrorist organization, making it illegal to be a part of or support the group.
According to a draft order that will be presented to parliament, Wagner’s assets will be designated as terrorist property and seized as Wagner is “violent and destructive… a military tool of Vladimir Putin’s Russia,” and its operations in Africa, Ukraine and more countries pose a “threat to global security,” according to Home Secretary Suella Braverman.
Braverman continued: “Wagner’s continuing destabilizing activities only continue to serve the Kremlin’s political goals. They are terrorists, plain and simple and this proscription order makes that clear in UK law.”
Wagner has been charged with a number of crimes, including the murder and torture of Ukrainian residents by its fighters in Africa and Syria and was a prominent force in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While the UK claims the organization had taken out “executions and torture in Mali and the Central African Republic” in July, the US claimed that Wagner forces had laid landmines around Tripoli, the capital of Libya, in 2020.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the group’s founder, attempted a failed coup against Russia’s military leaders earlier this year, raising concerns about the group’s viability.
Along with other Wagner figures, Prigozhin died on August 23 in a suspected jet crash and was buried in St Petersburg.
However, now that the group has been outlawed by the UK, its name will appear alongside that of other organizations like Hamas and Boko Haram.
Prior to the Terrorism Act of 2000, only Northern Ireland had the authority to order the home secretary to ban a group accused of supporting terrorism.
As a result of the government’s proscription order, it is now illegal to organize meetings for, express support for, or exhibit a group’s flag or logo. The order could result in 14 years in prison or a fine of up to £5,000 following persistent pressure from MPs.
David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary for Labour, called for the government to ban Wagner earlier this year, claiming it was “responsible for the appalling atrocities in Ukraine and around the world.”
Welcoming the draft order on Tuesday, Lammy said on social media: “This is long overdue, but its welcome the government has finally acted. Now the government should press for a Special Tribunal to prosecute Putin for his crime of aggression.”
The Foreign Office had imposed sanctions on the group, including freezing the assets of Prigozhin and several top commanders. (Int’l News Desk)
