Video Appears to Show Russian Mercenary Clash With Soldiers Over War

Videos posted to Telegram on Friday apparently show a Russian mercenary fighting with Russian troops inside of a hotel.

One video, posted by the Russian Telegram news account Baza, shows a man who is reportedly a mercenary arguing with, pushing and hitting Russian National Guard officers in a hotel lobby. The incident reportedly occurred in the Russian city of Vorozneh.

Another video shows the man hitting one of the soldiers, and being brought down by the group of Russian military officials, with one hitting the reported mercenary with what appears to be a baton. A third video shows the man in handcuffs on the ground.

The Moscow Times reported that the video shows a fight between an apparent mercenary with the Wagner Group and the national guard officers. Newsweek was not able to independently verify the videos.

The Wagner Military Group, is an elite paramilitary force that has been linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and sent mercenaries to fight in Ukraine.

The man reportedly says, "I fought for your country," and "Are going to threaten me?" the newspaper reported. The man seen in the video was reportedly discharged from service following the violent incident at the hotel.

Rob Lee, a senior fellow in the Foreign Policy Research Institute's Eurasia Program who researches Russian defense policy, tweeted out the videos and said: "An apparent member of Wagner got into a fight with Rosgvardia members at a hotel in Voronezh after returning from Ukraine. He repeatedly mentions that he fought for his country."

"Would not be surprised if this becomes a greater problem going forward. A sense of resentment from Wagner members and other volunteers that they did the fighting and put themselves at risk while others did not and the state didn't fully mobilize," Lee added.

Newsweek has reached out to Russia's Ministry of Defense for comment.

In an assessment in July, Britain's Ministry of Defense said that mercenaries have played a key role in Russia's strategy in Ukraine as the country has faced a troop shortage.

Earlier this week, the Wagner Group pitched prisoners to fight in the war in Ukraine. In a video, Russian billionaire Yevgeny Prigozhin, and who the U.S. government believes is the manager and financier of the Wagner Group, can reportedly be seen addressing a group of Russian inmates.

"If you serve six months [in Wagner], you are free," Prigozhin said, according to the BBC, and added that "if you arrive in Ukraine and decide it's not for you, we will execute you."