Dismantling of Wagner Camp Unfolds in Belarus

In the village of Tsel near Osipovichi, located in Belarus, an active process of dismantling the camp of militants from the private military company (PMC) "Wagner" is taking place. This has been confirmed by a satellite image from the Planet Labs service. According to estimates by the Belarusian Radio Liberty, approximately a third of the tents have been dismantled.

Initially, in the northern part of the "Wagner" military base, there were around 129 tents. As of August 23, approximately 65 of them have disappeared. In the western part of the base, 27 out of 64 tents have been taken down. In the central section of the base, around 9 out of 80 tents remain.

Overall, out of the 273 residential tents, 101 have been dismantled. Considering that each tent could accommodate around 20 soldiers, it is possible that about 2020 "Wagner" fighters who were previously stationed on this territory have been relocated to an unknown location.

The dismantling of the first tents began around August 1. A satellite image from August 14 provides a detailed view of the dismantling process, including wooden frames that were installed for the soldiers living in these tents.

Currently, it remains unknown where these tents have been transported and whether the "Wagner" fighters have vacated the territory of Belarus. Other available satellite images do not show the establishment of similar camps at other military training grounds or bases in Belarus. Journalists continue to monitor the situation.

Telegram channels associated with the private military company "Wagner" report that some fighters are returning home to Russia for an extended leave. There is also a possibility that some "Wagner" mercenaries are being redeployed to Africa. It is not ruled out that some of them might be transferred to other locations within Belarus.

Previously, it was reported that bomb shelters suitable for winter living conditions were constructed on the military training ground in Repechi. A satellite image from July 31, 2023, shows several new structures that have appeared on this training ground.

It's worth mentioning that on the evening of August 23, a private plane crashed in the Tver Region of Russia. According to the Russian aviation authority, the leader of the PMC "Wagner," Yevgeny Prigozhin, and his close associate, neo-Nazi Dmitry Utkin, were reportedly on board. A Telegram channel close to the "Wagner" PMC, Grey Zone, claims that Yevgeny Prigozhin's plane was shot down by anti-aircraft fire. They also suggest that a terrorist act aboard the plane is being considered as a possible version of the crash.