🚨 New podcast: @johnalechner.bsky.social talks to me about the life/death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, local agency in the Central African Republic and the role of mercenaries in Russia's invasion of Ukraine. I learned a lot www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM4A...

Thank you, @lilylynch.bsky.social for recommending DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS in @jacobinmagazin.bsky.social's Summer Guide! An unusually sensitive piece of war correspondence... Lechner argues Wagner represents a new kind of warfare, one that emerged with mass privatization. jacobin.com/2025/06/summ...

In São Gabriel da Cachoeira with my friend and Tariana teacher, Jovino. Tariana is an endangered Arawak language spoken along the Vaupés River in the Amazon.

Given the "departure" of Wagner Group from the Sahel, it's opportune moment to recommend @johnalechner.bsky.social's "Death Is Our Business". Well worth the read by both those who've been watching the group professionally and anyone just curious about the web of organizations of Prigozhin & Co.

🚨 Job alert 🚨Join @emorier.bsky.social, @vincentfoucher.bsky.social, @corinnajentzsch.com and me, and be part of a new exciting research project on jihadism in Africa. Two more positions will follow. Feel free to approach @emorier.bsky.social if you have questions. Please circulate widely

"Not only has Lechner interviewed around 30 Wagner members, but he has conducted extensive ground reporting on Wagner in Africa. This would be a hazardous assignment even for the major news outlets, let alone a freelancer such as Lechner." www.telegraph.co.uk/books/non-fi...

"Lechner blends beautiful first-person writing with granular reporting to show how Wagner became embroiled in foreign wars after the conflict in eastern Ukraine died down."

"Lechner blends beautiful first-person writing with granular reporting to show how Wagner became embroiled in foreign wars after the conflict in eastern Ukraine died down."

DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS is one of 6 books critics and editors at @nytimes.com recommend this week! www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/b...

"Lechner blends beautiful first-person writing with granular reporting. An enviably talented linguist, the author interviewed more than 30 Wagner fighters as well as people who fought with and against them across Europe, Africa and the Middle East." www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/b...

Having completed @johnalechner.bsky.social 's "Death is Our Business", I can highly recommend it to connect the dots as it provides a great look between many of the mainstream stories of #WagnerGroup. #Africa, #Syria, #CAR, #Libya, #Sudan, #MaratGabidullin www.goodreads.com/book/show/21...

@johnalechner.bsky.social looking forward to this

And two recent pieces on the Wagner Group in Africa, starting with my review this week of two great new books on the mercenary outfit - one by @johnalechner.bsky.social, and the other by @jackmargolin.bsky.social www.economist.com/culture/2025...

Great read: "Death is Our Business" by @johnalechner.bsky.social is one of the best books so far on #Russia's mercenaries and private warfare. And it reads like a thriller. www.bloomsbury.com/us/death-is-...

spoke with @johnalechner.bsky.social about his incredible new book 'Death Is Our Business.' It's everything you ever wanted to know about Russian mercenaries angryplanetpod.com/p/life-insid...

Finally had a chance to read @johnalechner.bsky.social’s fascinating book on Wagner. I highly recommend it. John explains with jaw-dropping details and fine analysis what Prigozhin represented for Russia’s state apparatus and vice versa. About Wagner’s in Africa… 🔽 www.bloomsbury.com/us/death-is-...

"Through dozens of interviews with Wagner members, Lechner delves into the group's murky beginnings...Death Is Our Business is a trenchant assessment of Wagner's ongoing influence and impact around the globe." Thank you Shelf Awareness for the great review! www.shelf-awareness.com/sar-issue.ht...

On April 9 I'll be sharing my new book, DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS, as part of The Aspen Institute's Susan and John Klein Book Series. Register for the event below! www.aspeninstitute.org/events/susan...

Meta pirated 16 of my books/stories to train their AI. Fuck Meta, fuck AI, and fuck everyone stealing our work to call themselves a writer. Anyway, go buy House of Bone and Rain or The Devil Takes You Home.

🎙️On this week’s #Whowhatwhy podcast, author @johnalechner.bsky.social joins Jeff Schechtman to discuss the Wagner Group’s secretive origins and its rise to challenge Vladimir Putin. whowhatwhy.org/podcast/coul...

A really big thank you to author @johnalechner.bsky.social & everyone who made it out tonight. A fascinating conversation, not only about the Wagner mercenary group, but also the intricacies of the situation in the Central African Republic, & being an independent journalist in conflict zones.

Thank you, Clarissa!

🚨🚨NEW Radio @TheWarNerd up — we talk to John Lechner @johnalechner.bsky.social about "Death Is Our Business", his new book on Wagner Group and the incredible rise & fall (like, really fall) of Yevgeny Prigozhin. www.patreon.com/posts/radio-...

"a great book for both hardcore followers of international conflicts, as well as for the layman interested in military history and current events." Thank you Carl Peterson for an expert review of DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS! www.militantwire.com/p/russias-pr...

‘Native languages should be spoken and preserved, tribes say after Trump's 'English' order’ via @azcentral.com by @debkrol.bsky.social

"The first mission in Syria, Marat remembers, was an effort to sell Wagner’s services. 'Not everyone in the MoD was aware of our activities in eastern Ukraine.'" Read an excerpt from the Syria chapter of my book, DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS, in @foreignpolicy.com foreignpolicy.com/2025/03/07/w...

How Wagner Cut Its Teeth in Syria | Thrilled to have an adapted excerpt from my book, DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS, on Wagner's arrival in Syria, published in Foreign Policy today! foreignpolicy.com/2025/03/07/s...

We're ready! @johnalechner.bsky.social Look what just arrived! Order by Friday and save 15% - we can even hold the book for pickup at the author talk on March 12th! Support indie bookstores, not the guy building rockets. bergstrompressbooks.com/en/military-...

I had a great time talking all things Wagner with Jude Brewer for his podcast, "The Process." Have a listen! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/6...

Thank you, @inkstickmedia.com for naming my @thebaffler.com article, "The Tip of Russia’s Spear When Wagner came to Libya," as the most important read this week!

The latest Critical State newsletter recommends important new work by: - @johnalechner.bsky.social at @thebaffler.com - Rahaf Aldoughli at @newlinesmag.bsky.social - Milica Stojanovic at Balkan Insight - @carolineferaday.bsky.social at The World - Plus more. Read & subscribe for free:

Today is the publication day for @johnalechner.bsky.social's Death is our Business - but did you know that he also co-authored a textbook for learning Chechen! Come out on March 12th and ask him about this less-commonly taught language too! Buy both! bergstrompressbooks.com/en/learning-...

thank you Wolfram!

Massive congratulations to @johnalechner.bsky.social whose book DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS is published today. I had a chance to read an advance copy of this detailed and thrilling account of the Wagner Group's activities - from Syria to Ukraine - and highly recommend it!

DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS launches today! Grounded in my five years working in CAR, Mali, Libya, Ukraine, and Syria. Featuring interviews with 40 #Wagner mercenaries, executives, and affiliates. www.amazon.com/Death-Our-Bu...

"Wagner and the rise of the freelance tough guy." www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com/bookreview/d... @johnalechner.bsky.social @bloomsburybooksus.bsky.social #deathisourbusiness #wagner #wagnergroup #putin #ukraine #mercenary #booksky

Our next author event will be held on March 12th at 630pm! Don't miss this evening with @johnalechner.bsky.social as he discusses his book and gives us insight into Wagner and its operations in Ukraine, Syria, and Africa! Pre-order and save 10%! bergstrompressbooks.com/en/military-...

Just two days away from the Tuesday release of DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS! "Gripping and superbly researched, featuring interviews with dozens of Wagner members...This is one of those non-fiction books that gives this spy novelist ideas." - David McCloskey www.dailymail.co.uk/home/books/a...

"Among other things, John Lechner’s deeply researched book offers new insight into Wagner’s role in Africa, showing how the group’s growing influence there spooked the West and facilitated Prigozhin’s rise back in Russia." @thewashingtonpost.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...

Sources to @reuters.com's Maya Gebeily and @humeyrapamuk.bsky.social: Israel lobbying United States to keep Syria weak and decentralized, including by allowing Russia to keep bases on Syrian coast to balance Turkish influence: www.reuters.com/world/israel...

Israel is lobbying the United States to let Russia keep its bases in Syria – scoop by @humeyrapamuk.bsky.social and Maya Gebeily, @reuters.com. www.reuters.com/world/israel...

On today's @lawfare.bsky.social podcast @rchason.bsky.social & @johnalechner.bsky.social help us understand forces that have converged in the Sahel over the past couple years through a series of portraits, including a militia commander, coup leader, defiant broadcaster, Russian mercenary, and more.

On Lawfare Daily, @tylermcbrien.bsky.social spoke to @rchason.bsky.social and @johnalechner.bsky.social about the current state of the Sahel and the many forces that have converged in the region over the past couple of years.

Nazar, a Wagner mercenary in Mali, shed light on the notoriously insular group’s operations, telling me and @johnalechner.bsky.social how Wagner made Mali’s military stronger as they took back bases — but also how fleeting those gains felt: wapo.st/3Qqd0hY

"Lechner traveled to Libya, the Central African Republic and beyond to bring a wealth of new reporting, interviewing more than 30 Wagner members in the process." Thank you Laura Mills for reviewing DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS in @washingtonpost.com! www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...

@johnalechner.bsky.social’s deeply researched “Death Is Our Business: Russian Mercenaries and the New Era of Private Warfare” offers new insight into the Wagner groupsrole in Africa, showing how the group’s growing influence there spooked the West and facilitated Prigozhin’s rise

Where you can find my thoughts and words from now on: substack.com/@ksvarnon

Thank you @drjademcglynn.bsky.social for reading DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS! Some later sections of the book in particular lean on Dr. McGlynn's research on the role of history in Putin's Russia

The Tip of Russia’s Spear: When Wagner came to Libya | Absolutely thrilled to have an excerpt from my upcoming book on Russian mercenaries and Wagner Group published with @thebaffler.com today. Pick up DEATH IS OUR BUSINESS on March 4! thebaffler.com/latest/the-t...