Russia’s Wagner militia suggests deserter was – and wasn’t – executed
A video appearing to show the execution using a sledgehammer of a Russian mercenary who fled the Wagner group while fighting in Ukraine was shared on social media, although Wagner's founder declined to say whether the apparent victim had been killed or not. The Wagner mercenary group, which operates outside the main Russian military command in Ukraine and promotes itself as Russia's most ruthless and effective fighting force, has adopted the sledgehammer as its symbol after reportedly using it to execute a defector from its ranks last year. In the footage, captioned "Video from the court for treason", a man…