A Russian Ka-52 “Alligator” attack helicopter fires during a 2021 demonstration. One Ka-52 helicopter was reportedly destroyed by Wagner mercenaries during their revolt.Leonid Faerberg/Getty Images Suspicions of disloyalty seemingly extend far beyond senior officials and generals who had direct ties to Prigozhin. Some pilots and airmen are said to face questions for refusing orders to fire on the Wagner columns during their coup. Some Russian bloggers felt it was hypocritical to punish the aviators when the mutineers were let off. A cloud of suspicion is descending on Russia’s vast security state over questions about how thousands of Russian mercenaries could…
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KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The ambush had been postponed three times before Ukrainian commanders decided one recent night that conditions were finally right. Cloaked in darkness, a battalion of Kyiv’s 129th brigade pressed ahead, advancing stealthily on unsuspecting Russian soldiers. By the time the Russians situated along the front line realized they were under attack, it was too late. Ukraine’s recapture of the small village of Neskuchne in the eastern Donetsk region on June 10 encapsulates the opening strategy of a major counteroffensive launched earlier this month. Small platoons bank on the element of surprise and, when successful, make incremental…