Video shows Russians cheering for Wagner and Prigozhin as they leave the key military hub of Rostov-on-Don.
Reuters
Videos show Russians cheering for Wagner troops in Rostov-on-Don.
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin previously said Wagner captured the military hub without firing a shot.
Prigozhin was among the Wagner fighters leaving Rostov on Saturday night.
When Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Russian mercenary outfit known as the Wagner Group, launched his brief insurrection on Friday, he said he had the support of the Russian people.
Some of that support was on display hours later after he called on his troops to turn back just 120 miles from Moscow.
Prigozhin himself accompanied his troops as they left the captured city of Rostov-on-Don on Saturday, returning it to Russian authorities, according to The New York Times. A military blogger posted a photo on Telegram that shows Prighozin leaving the city, per a translation by The Times.
Prigozhin earlier claimed that his fighters were able to capture Rostov-on-Don — a key military town — “without firing a single shot” and without killing anyone.
Videos and images from the scene of their departure show Russians cheering and fist-bumping Wagner soldiers.
Russian Wagner fighters pull out of Rostov-on-Don.
Reuters
Videos posted by local media show Russians thanking Russian Wagner fighters, according to The Times, and one video shows someone firing shots into the air as the troops leave.
Prigozhin called off his troops on Saturday after negotiations with Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko, a close Putin ally. A Kremlin spokesperson told The Associated Press that Prigozhin would be allowed to live in exile in Belarus and that his troops would have the option to join the regular Russian army.
There are yet few other details, however. It is unclear where Prigozhin is now and what the future of his Wagner Group will be.