Good morning.
Months of simmering tension between the Russian military and the Wagner group, a Russian mercenary organisation, came to the boil over the weekend after the group’s leader, hitherto Vladimir Putin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed to have seized control of all military sites in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.
Since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Wagner group has fought alongside the Russian military, with thousands of Wagner troops estimated to have been deployed. Their tactics are brutal and violent. The group, which describes itself as a “private military company”, has been around since 2014 and has intervened in conflicts across Africa and the Middle East. But on Friday, Prigozhin broke ranks accusing the Russian military leadership of starving his troops of ammunition in an expletive-laden video. He accused Russian military leaders of targeting his forces and killing his fighters in a rocket attack, and accused the Kremlin of lying to the public about its justifications for invading Ukraine.
The hours that followed were filled with chaos. As Wagner forces marched on Moscow, Putin vowed vengeance on Russian state TV. Prigozhin called his rebellion a “march for freedom” and the world watched closely as a nuclear power teetered on the edge of civil war, before pulling back from the brink.
Today’s newsletter is a roundup of the weekend’s astonishing events. That’s right after the headlines.
Five big stories
NHS | Britons die sooner from cancer and heart disease than people in many other rich countries, partly because of the NHS’s lack of beds, staff and scanners, a study has found. The UK “underperforms significantly”, in part because the NHS has been weakened by years of underinvestment, according to the King’s Fund health thinktank.
Strikes | The government is prepared to overrule and block the pay rises that public sector review bodies recommend, a senior minister has confirmed, as unions threaten to strike over the issue.
Tax | More than 180,000 people on low incomes were fined for not filing a tax return on time last year, even though they received so little that they had no tax to pay in the first place. Many of these people, already in severe financial difficulties, misunderstood the initial fine and were then subjected to further fines and interest.
Greece | The New Democracy Party has won a comfortable victory in Greece’s second election in five weeks. The centre-right party won 40.5% of the vote, giving them an outright majority and their leader, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a second four-year term in office.
UK news | The musicians Fatboy Slim, Billy Bragg, and Olugbenga Adelekan of Metronomy – in a letter to home secretary Suella Braverman – have called for the government to allow the resumption of tests of confiscated pills at music festivals. A cross-party group of MPs have condemned the Home Office’s decision to block onsite drug testing as “shortsighted and dangerous”.
In depth: Why ‘Putin’s chef’ turned on Moscow
Yevgeny Prigozhin’s fleeting attempt at revolution may not have succeeded but it does suggest that Putin may not have as strong a grip on power as he would like the world to believe. The US has said that the events show that there are real cracks in Russia’s government – and it’s hard to disagree when a key arm of Moscow’s military power seems to have gone rogue.
It is unlikely that this is the last we will hear of the feud between the “maverick warlord” and the Russian president, Andrew Roth writes in his analysis. But before we look ahead, let’s parse what exactly went on in the past 72 hours.
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What happened?
The escalation in the conflict between Russia’s military and paramilitary forces marks the most significant challenge to Vladimir Putin’s hold on power since he became president in 1999.
Prigozhin’s open revolt against Russia’s military leadership began on Saturday morning when Wagner soldiers crossed from occupied eastern Ukraine into Rostov-on-Don, a big city in the country’s south. It is there that the Wagner group’s leader (pictured above) claimed that his fighters were in control of the city’s military sites. It was particularly difficult to be sure of what was happening because of Prigozhin’s history of making outlandish and often inaccurate claims, writes Jonathan Yerushalmy.
Rostov is a tactically significant city for Russia as it houses the command centre for the Russian joint group of forces in Ukraine – any confusion or disorder there could impact important aspects of the war effort. The mercenary group’s leader said that they would blockade Rostov until he could speak to Russia’s defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, and the chief of the Russian General Staff, Valery Gerasimov – his rivals in Russia’s military leadership.
And that wasn’t all. Prigozhin’s armoured convoy set out for Moscow, seemingly without opposition from the Russian state apparatus. Authorities in the capital implemented anti-terror measures. Civilians were told to stay in their houses, work was cancelled, events were called off until July.
But then reports suddenly came in that a deal was being brokered by the Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko. As quickly as the mutiny began, it had seemingly ended, as Prigozhin agreed to turn his troops around to avoid the shedding of Russian blood. Under the agreement, Prigozhin was exiled from Russia but he and his fighters would not face charges of treason. While Putin staved off this crisis, it has exposed his waning grip on power, writes Luke Harding, in his snap analysis of the political situation in Russia. The abrupt de-escalation averted the chance of a civil war breaking out in the country.
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Who is Yevgeny Prigozhin and who are the Wagner group
Before becoming one of Vladimir Putin’s closest allies, Yevgeny Prigozhin spent most of his 20s in prison for a series of violent robberies in 1980. He was released just as the Soviet Union was collapsing and in the following years built a catering empire that started off as a hotdog stand in a flea market.
Prigozhin became known as “Putin’s chef” because of his numerous links to the Kremlin, and was renowned for his thuggish behaviour, ruthlessness and violence – a heady mix that created the profile of a man able to found what is now known as the Wagner Mercenary Group. For more information on Prigozhin’s life, read Shaun Walker and Pjotr Sauer’s article on his rise to the top of Russia’s war machine.
The paramilitary group, who were designated a transnational criminal organisation by the US in January, has been accused of war crimes, including torture, sexual violence and mass-murder, and are known to have taken part in conflicts in Syria, Libya, Central African Republic and Mali. The group operate with impunity and are unafraid to sustain heavy losses on their own side.
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How did the world respond?
The reaction shifted from confusion, to fear, to bewilderment. The official response from most foreign governments has simply been to reiterate that they are closely watching how things shake out.
An adviser to the Ukrainian defence minister has been less neutral, describing the revolt as “the most ridiculous attempt at mutiny” ever. Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said the events showed Russia’s “full-scale weakness,” adding that the longer Russia keeps its troops and mercenaries in Ukraine, “the more chaos, pain and problems it will have for itself later”. Rishi Sunak called an emergency Cobra meeting and urged “all parties to be responsible and to protect civilians”. (Miranda Bryant’s piece lays out the rest of the responses from across Europe and North America.)
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How will this impact Ukraine?
It is difficult to be sure what this short-lived rebellion means for the war in Ukraine. On Saturday, Prigozhin insisted that his so-called freedom march would not impede Russia’s war effort at all. News of the mutiny filled Ukrainians with hope that this could be the death knell of Russia’s invasion of their country. But as the hours wore on and the chance of civil war decreased, the dream of an end to war began to look increasingly unlikely.
The rebellion will still likely benefit Ukraine even if it’s just in the short term: as Emma Graham-Harrison notes in her analysis: “Focus, weapons and troops were shifted away from the frontlines, as Kyiv [intensified] its counter-offensive.”
While the situation in Russia looks like it has now quietened down, with Prigozhin headed to Belarus and the Wagner group back in their assumed positions, things are rarely as they seem in Russia. It may take months for the true fallout of this failed coup to become apparent – in the meantime our reporters on the ground in the region will be on hand to provide all the latest news and analysis.
What else we’ve been reading
A listening pick today: last Thursday marked the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Windrush in the UK, and the advent of the “Windrush generation” of Caribbean Britons – among them my grandparents – who helped to rebuild the “mother country”, and enriched its culture as they did so. In a special episode of the Guardian’s Pop Culture podcast, Chanté Joseph spoke to musicians about the impact this generation had on the UK, as the likes of lovers rock and reggae shot up the charts. Hannah J Davies, deputy editor, newsletters
Hey, young people! Did you know that in the olden days we didn’t work all the time because nobody could send us emails at night?! This Slate piece in which Gen X-ers reminisce about that time when you just watched whatever was on TV is a hoot. Esther Addley, senior reporter, First Edition
After last Friday’s First Edition on the one-year anniversary of the decision to overturn Roe v Wade, Poppy Noor has written an incredible piece about reporting for the Guardian about the erosion of women’s reproductive rights while pregnant herself. Hannah
After years of neglect, brands and modelling agencies were finally paying attention to older women in their campaigns and on runways. That has changed since 2020. Amelia Hill takes a look at why demand for older models has waned since the pandemic. Nimo
Whether you’re on a beach or just sitting in your local park, reading in the sunshine is one of life’s little pleasures. If you’re in need of inspiration, writers including Zadie Smith and Ian Rankin have chosen their favourite summer reads for the Guardian. Hannah
Sport
Cricket | England’s chances of a first Test victory since January 2014 hung in the balance at the end of the fourth day of the Women’s Ashes. Sophie Ecclestone said her side would “go away tonight and figure out how we’re going to win this Test match” after they sunk to 116 for five.
Football | Nicolas Jackson will join Chelsea from Villarreal for €37m on an eight-year deal after completing his medical with the club on Sunday. Jackson scored 12 goals in 26 appearances in La Liga last season and came close to joining Bournemouth in January but failed a medical because of a hamstring problem.
Tennis | Carlos Alcaraz has declared himself one of the “favourites” to win Wimbledon, after beating Australian Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4, taking his first grass-court trophy at Queen’s. The new men’s world No 1 is guaranteed to be top seed at Wimbledon in a week’s time.
The front pages
Events in Russia over the weekend continue to dominate front pages. The Guardian leads with “Wagner uprising reveals cracks in Putin’s authority, says US”. The i says “Putin silent on mutiny that rocked the Kremlin”. The Financial Times reports “Aborted Wagner insurrection lays bare the cracks in Putin’s authority”. Referencing internal UK government assessments, the Times leads with “Prepare for fall of Putin Britain told.”
Elsewhere, the Mail has “Fergie in recovery after breast cancer op”. The Mirror leads with “Fergie: my breast cancer op”, while the Sun goes with “Fergie: I’ve got cancer”.
Finally, the Telegraph splashes with a new charity project from the Prince of Wales: “Ending homelessness is my life’s work, says Prince”.
Today in Focus
A violent US homicide – and a pioneering act of forgiveness
Seven years ago, the brother of part-time minister Alex Fields (pictured above) was stabbed by his nephew. The large, tight-knit Fields family were devastated. Furious with Donald Fields Jr for attacking his father, they met the district attorney’s office and offered a 20-year sentence in prison for murder.
But Durham, North Carolina had recently elected a progressive DA who wanted to encourage the use of restorative justice, which emphasises accountability and reconciliation over punishment. It is not often used in violent cases in the US, let alone in homicide cases. The Guardian’s US southern bureau chief, Oliver Laughland, reports on an extraordinary, potentially unprecedented case.
Cartoon of the day | Edith Pritchett
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The Upside
A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad
The Guardian’s weekly Experience column highlights a singular chapter in somebody’s life, be it a far-fetched claim to fame or a personal tragedy. But what happens after their story is published? This week, Guardian writers Grace Holliday and Deborah Linton caught up with some of their previous interviewees. Among them, Vanessa Hilton (pictured above), who has a spinal fluid leak, and was interviewed for a piece titled “I have to spend my life lying horizontally.”
Since the piece was published, Hilton has been able to buy a specially modified bike thanks to GoFundMe donations from readers. “I’ve used it nearly every day since,” says Hilton. “I can’t put into words how liberating it’s been.”
Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday
Bored at work?
And finally, the Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day – with plenty more on the Guardian’s Puzzles app for iOS and Android. Until tomorrow.
