INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
23 death in a plane crash near President Vladimir Putin's residence in Valdai, Prigozhin, the mercenary leader who launched an armed mutiny
with Prigozhin's body was lowered into the grave, there were no mass gatherings of citizens, mercenaries and sympathizers around, as well as
format was the subject of several consultations involving senior Kremlin officials and Federal Security Service (FSB) officers, the
funeral was directly linked to the Russian president's ratings and popularity
Officers from several intelligence agencies were also present.The public response to Prigozhin, his rebellion and subsequent demise had
deeply unsettled the Russian leadership.During his June 24 mutiny, Prigozhin and his fighters were warmly welcomed by many Russians as they
occupied Rostov-on-Don, while the army and special services did not put up significant resistance to the armed Wagner units approaching the
official told The Moscow Times of the logic behind the authorities' behavior.Wagner Fighters in Rostov-on-Don during Prigozhin's mutiny
meetings with Kremlin and security officials, a plan was approved for Prigozhin's funeral to take place with a minimal likelihood of public
to mislead the public and the media about the site of the burial.On the day of the funeral, news reports and social media channels claimed
preparations for the ceremony were underway in several cemeteries in St
funeral was over.Even after the ceremony ended, dozens of police officersguarded the approach to the burial site
on Wednesday morning, cars lined up in a 2-kilometer-long traffic jam at the cemetery entrance, local news outlet Fontanka reported.During
his lifetime, Putin personally bestowed Prigozhin with the Hero of Russia title, a status that implies a lavish funeral ceremony including
independent publication Agentstvoreported
This was ostensibly done to ensure maximum control and prevent any disruptions.The Kremlin officials were tasked with silencing media
outlets noted that information about Prigozhin's funeral as well as the crash itself were virtually ignored by Russian state
attention to the event in their primetime evening newscasts
Only one of the three main television channels allocated a brief one-minute slot to mention the Wagner leader's funeral.Independent
