Yevgeny Prigozhin will be denied a state funeral

Yevgeny Prigozhin's portrait at a makeshift memorial in Moscow Credit: REUTERS

Yevgeny Prigozhin appears to be denied a state funeral to which he is entitled after the Kremlin said it expected the mercenary boss's family to take action of its own.

Prigozhin, who owed his meteoric rise to power to Vladimir Putin, fell out of favor with the Kremlin after he raised failed rebellion. He died when his plane crashed in Russia on Wednesday.

Kremlin observers said the funeral of Wagner group leader would provide strong evidence of what will happen to his legacy.

Months before sending his troops to Moscow, Prigozhin was awarded the Order of the Hero of Russia, a prestigious medal that entitles the recipient to a state funeral with a guard of honor.

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On Monday, however, Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman, did not confirm whether Prigozhin would be formally buried, telling Russian news outlets: «Decisions like this are usually made with the family, and it's up to the family to decide.»

When asked if Putin would attend the funeral, Peskov replied that he could not answer, since he had no information about the organization of the funeral. .

Russian media reported over the weekend that DNA tests confirmed that Wagner's boss and his top commanders were among the victims of the plane crash. Peskov said the tests were carried out on Sunday.

Sergey Markov, a political strategist close to the Kremlin, said on Monday that Moscow would likely opt for a small funeral without military honors and prevent it. large-scale farewell ceremonies and patriotic rallies.”

Prigozhin’s body was identified and taken to his native St. Petersburg after a final DNA test on Sunday, Russian media reported.