By Deutsche Welle
Aug 25, 2024, 7:03 PM EDT
A Russian attack on civilian infrastructure in the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk, close to the Donetsk front, hit several journalists of Ukrainian, American, Latvian and British nationality who were in a hotel, authorities reported on Sunday. The attack killed a British security adviser for the Reuters news agency.
The victim, who was found among the rubble by rescuers in the afternoon, was identified by the news agency as Ryan Evans, 38.
Reuters confirms the death of its journalist
Evans was part of a six-person Reuters team staying at the Sapphire Hotel when a Russian missile destroyed part of the building and nearby residences shortly after 10.30pm on Saturday.
Among the injured are four journalists from the United States, Germany, Latvia and Ukraine. A report posted on social media says that two local residents were also injured.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the hotel was hit by a Russian Iskander ballistic missile, capable of hitting targets 500 kilometers away.
“An ordinary city hotel was destroyed,” the president said in his evening speech, where he said the bombing was “totally intentional, deliberate. My condolences to the families and friends of the victims.” The Russian government’s Ministry of Defense did not respond to questions on this matter.
Two seriously injured
A Polish journalist from the weekly Tygodnik Powszechny, Monika Andruszewska was also slightly injured when a projectile hit the vehicle she was driving in in Kramatorsk, she said on her Facebook account.
“This is what anyone, anywhere in Ukraine, where the Russians have decided to launch a rocket, might look like,” she wrote, along with a photo showing her with a bloody arm.
Reuters said Evans, a 38-year-old former British soldier who had been working as a security adviser for the agency since 2022, was with five other employees from the same company.
Two of them are hospitalized, one in serious condition. The other three were unhurt or had minor injuries. “We are seeking more information about the attack, and supporting our colleagues and their families,” Reuters said.
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