Dmitri Sytyi is considered the mercenary company’s top civilian leader in the Central African Republic where Russia’s Wagner has been present for a number of years. Sytyi was rushed to a hospital in the CAR capital Bangui following the blast on Friday.
The pan-African weekly news magazine Jeune Afrique reports that the senior executive was the target of a parcel bomb attack at his office.
Sytyi is said to have lived in Bangui for more than four years becoming an essential figure within the Wagner Group’s operation in the region.
Wagner continues to expand its influence in Africa with fighters now suspected to have a presence in Mali and Burkina Faso alongside CAR.
Though Mali and Burkina Faso reject the claim they are hosting the Russian mercenaries primarily to counter jihadi insurgents.
Burkina Faso’s two coups — the first in January and another in September — brought Russia’s involvement in the West African country under scrutiny. Within hours of the second coup, the head of Russia’s shadowy mercenary outfit, the Wagner Group, was among the first to congratulate the new junta leader.
Protesters waving Russian flags attacked the French Embassy and the French Institute in the capital, Ouagadougou.
Many said they believed that Wagner mercenaries are better equipped to stop Burkina Faso’s jihadi violence than Western allies like France.
The pace of Islamic extremist violence is increasing in Burkina Faso and getting closer to the capital, Ouagadougou, which could make the desperate junta welcome support from the Russian mercenaries, said Laith Alkhouri, CEO of Intelonyx Intelligence Advisory.
Wagner units have been an important asset for the Kremlin in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The group’s boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has provided Vladimir Putin with additional manpower in Russia’s bid to capture Donbas.
Institute for the Study of War analysts have noted that Wagner Group fighters are putting up a desperate resistance south of the city of Bakhmut as the Ukrainian Army looks to counter-attack and retake lost positions along the frontline.
ISW cites a “Russian military blogger” who reported that Wagner Group forces in the Bakhmut area have been using 2,000 rounds per day per fighter.