He declared for good the “war” on Sergei Shoigu o Yevgeny Prigozhin... The Russian founder of the Wagner mercenary organization, who has been at odds with the military leadership for months, escalated his confrontation on Friday, accusing Russian Defense Ministry men of trying to blow up his men.

In his Telegram post, Prigozhin argues that men they discovered 12 spots on his back where Ministry of Defense officials had planted various explosive devices, including hundreds of anti-tank mines. When asked why, they told him that this was the order they received from their superiors.

“There was no need to plant these explosives to deter the enemy since (this area) was in the rear. Therefore, we can assume that these explosives were intended for Wagner’s forward units,” he argued.

None of the explosive devices detonated and no one was injured, he said, adding: “We assume she was an attempt at public flogging’.

Russia’s defense ministry was not available for comment.

Wagner’s members have almost withdrawn from the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut after capturing most of it last month, but suffering heavy casualties. They surrendered their positions to units of the Russian regular army.

Prigozhin, who has often complained that his men were not given ammunition for the Bakhmut attack, said on Wednesday that he had asked prosecutors to investigate whether high-ranking officials in the Russian armed forces had committed any “crime” before or during the war in Ukraine.