The presumed death of mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a fiery plane crash leaves Russian President Vladimir Putin stronger in the short term, removing a powerful figure who had defied his authority and threatened to make him look weak.
But it also deprives him of a forceful and astute player who had proved his utility to the Kremlin by sending his fighters into some of the bloodiest battles of the Ukraine war and advancing Russian interests across Africa.
After 24 hours of silence, Putin paid "sincere condolences" to the families of all 10 people on the plane that crashed north of Moscow, and praised Prigozhin as a "talented businessman." It is not yet clear what caused the plane to drop from the sky.