According to a report from the TASS news agency today, restrictions on the M4 motorway in the Moscow and Tula regions of Russia are still in effect. This follows the incident where troops from the Wagner military company staged an armed mutiny and approached Moscow along the M4. Initially, TASS reported that the Russian Federal Road Administration had lifted all restrictions. The latest update from the state agency confirms that armored vehicles are being withdrawn from checkpoints in Moscow.
On Saturday, highway closures were implemented in various regions, including Rostov, Voronezh, and Lipetsk.
During the mutiny, the Wagner group captured Rostov-on-Don in southwest Russia and proceeded towards Moscow, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, their leader, with the aim of demanding the removal of the Russian military command. However, the armed rebellion was abruptly ended on the same day, with Prigozhin justifying the decision to avoid shedding “Russian blood.”
Several videos circulating on social media depict residents of Rostov-on-Don filming the departing Wagner and enthusiastically celebrating their departure. Prigozhin himself received words of encouragement as he left. BBC News reports that the public in the city has shown considerable support for the mercenaries in recent hours, as evidenced by numerous images.
However, according to the exiled Russian website Meduza, the returning police officers did not always receive a warm welcome on the streets after the departure of the Wagner soldiers. In some footage, groups of people can be seen expressing shame and feelings of betrayal towards the police.
It is worth noting that Prigozhin has long had a strained relationship with the leadership of the Russian military. On Friday, he accused them of attacking his soldiers, resulting in the loss of many lives, and he expressed a desire for retaliation and punishment for those responsible for “destroying our men.”
