British authorities will ban the Russian mercenaries who played a major role in the invasion of Ukraine, the Wagner Group. For Britain, the Wagner Group is equivalent to the Islamic State (ISIS) militants.
Reported by AFP, Wednesday (6/9/2023), the British media report Daily Mail quoted the British Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) Suella Braverman as saying that the UK plans to designate the Wagner Group as a ‘prohibited’ organization under the anti-terror law (UU). .
This designation means placing the Wagner Group on a par with the Islamic State (ISIS) militant group and Al-Qaeda militants.
“Wagner is a violent and destructive organization that acts as a military tool for Russia under the leadership of Vladimir Putin abroad,” Braverman said in a statement.
“While the Putin regime decides what to do with the monster it created, Wagner’s continued destabilizing activities will only continue to serve the Kremlin’s political goals,” he added.
Under the UK’s Terrorism Act 2000, the Minister of Home Affairs has the power to ban an organization if they believe it is involved in terrorism. A ban on the Wagner Group would make supporting the group a criminal offense.
“They are terrorists, plain and simple — and this banning order makes that clear in British law,” Braverman was quoted as saying by leading British media, the BBC.
Braverman said Wagner was involved in the looting. The Russian mercenaries are also said to be involved in the heinous murder.
“Wagner was involved in looting, torture and heinous murder,” Braverman said.
Braverman added that Wagner Group’s operations in Ukraine, the Middle East and Africa ‘pose a threat to global security’.
“That’s why we outlawed this terrorist organization and continue to help Ukraine wherever possible in its fight against Russia,” he stressed.
Britain’s plan to ban the Wagner Group under the Terrorism Act will be submitted to the British parliament on Wednesday (6/9) local time.
Meanwhile, in July, Britain announced sanctions against 13 individuals and companies believed to be linked to the Wagner Group in Africa, accusing them of a series of crimes there, including murder and torture.
Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, who died in a plane crash last month, was also sanctioned by Britain along with several of its top commanders involved in the war sparked by Russia in Ukraine.
Prigozhin’s death came two months after he ordered Wagner’s mercenaries to revolt and overthrow Russia’s military leadership.
Read about the Wagner Group on the following page.
