Make Wagner News Today

on camera. a chinese fighter jet comes within 400 feet of a u.s. air force plane. our richard engels dangerous assignment inside an african nation pracactically rurun by a russian mercenary group. how its fueling the war in ukraine mystery solved why the famed venice canal suddenly turned green. and a major comeback for the pitcher diagnosed with cancer just five months ago >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt and good evening im tom llamas in for lester th...

trapped. the city under fire for trying to demolish the building today. we hear from desperate family members. also tonight, the most brazen attack inside russia yet. drones targeting residential areas in moscow. how president putin is responding tonight. the mass shooting on a boardwalk in florida. nine injured, four of them children while in california, a group of teens attacking these marines. the first big test in congress for the debt deal with a deadline to default just day...

Famously, if your house is on fire, you dont care what color the water is. so i understand why you reached out and you accepted russian help. are you happy with it? >> translator: you journalists are here. you should ask this question to the central african people. they will answer you. i am here to make sure that this population is protected. >> reporter: the government depends on wagner for its survival. wagner pays itself in gold. the people are left starving. we reached out to prigozhin. he ...

This woman, who asked us to conceal her identity for her protection, lived in the village of ndassima, where her husband was a gold miner. she told me how russian mercenaries arrived, armed in vehicles and ordered the villagers to leave. >> translator: there were beating people, whipping people and chasing them away. >> reporter: when her husband and seven others refused to go, they were executed. what do you think the russians wanted? gold? you think its as simple as that? >> translator: yes. t...

Mine and other sites. this was ndassima in 2019, before the russian takeover. an image taken this month shows the mine has expanded dramatically. analyst says it is now generating untraceable profits for wagner. wagner was invited in to the central african republic by the government to help crush a rebellion, and it worked. the capital is now far more secure. wagner made a movie about its military campaign called "the tourist" showing its men defeating the rebels and saving the day. it was a hit...

Whats it like for you as the director here to see all these cases? "it upsets me," she says. "mothers dont have money to buy food, and the children fall into this state." they are victims of africas resource course. the people are poor, despite living on land with vast untapped wealth. here its gold and diamonds. but instead of lifting people out of poverty, the riches flow into the hands of russian mercenaries from the wagner group. russias private army known for its brutality in ukraine. wagne...