Russian press crew hit by Ukrainian drones
A Russian press crew from Zvezda TV came under attack by Ukrainian drones while working near the front line in Kherson Region, the outlet reported on Thursday. One person – a military escort traveling with the team – was wounded.
According to Zvezda, the crew's vehicle was hit twice by drones after evading strikes earlier in the day. The car caught fire, forcing the crew to evacuate with the assistance of Russian troops. The network did not specify the size of the crew but said the military correspondent and cameraman were unharmed.
The attack took place near the settlement of Aleshki along a route leading to Kherson which remains under Ukrainian control. Aleshki, around 5km from Kherson on the Russian side of the Dnieper River, has faced repeated Ukrainian drone attacks. According to Zvezda, Ukrainian troops use the ruins of the Antonovsky Bridge to launch drone strikes on civilian infrastructure, hospitals, and roads, making the area one of the most dangerous in the region.
While Zvezda did not show footage of their destroyed vehicle, it aired images of other damaged civilian infrastructure in Aleshki, including buildings and a nearly destroyed ambulance.
Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo previously said Ukrainian troops 'systematically' hit ambulances, complicating efforts to evacuate the wounded.
Kiev regularly targets Russian journalists covering the conflict. In March, a vehicle marked as press in the Lugansk People's Republic was hit in a precision artillery strike, killing Izvestia reporter Aleksandr Fedorchak, Zvezda cameraman Andrey Panov, and their driver, Aleksandr Sirkeli. Another Zvezda reporter, Nikita Goldin, was seriously injured and later died. Recently, a Vesti Donetsk film crew was struck by a Ukrainian drone in Gorlovka, leaving the driver and cameraman with concussions after the UAV exploded near their car.
Russian officials have condemned attacks against journalists, accusing Kiev of deliberately targeting media crews to disrupt frontline reporting. Moscow has called on international organizations, including UNESCO, the OSCE, and UN, to denounce the attacks. Last year, it accused UNESCO of failing to include deadly Ukrainian attacks on Russian journalists in its latest biannual report covering the global state of journalist safety for 2022-23. The Russian Foreign Ministry has called Ukrainian attacks against journalists terrorism.
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