RIA Novosti correspondent Rostislav Zhuravlev, who served in the military operation zone, died as a result of shelling on July 22. The agency’s photojournalist Konstantin Mikhalchevsky, Izvestia reporter Roman Polshakov and cameraman Dmitry Shikov were injured.
How did journalists suffer?
The car in which journalists traveled from Vasylivka in the Zaporozhye region to the settlement of Vladimirovka, clarified Yevhen Balitsky, Deputy Governor of the Zaporozhye Region.
“A young talented man was on the front lines more than once, knew many soldiers personally, and did not step aside if civilians needed help,” Balitsky wrote of Zhuravlev.
Mikhalchevsky was injured of varying severity and is currently in the hospital.
“He is receiving all possible medical attention,” the official said.
according to the newspaper “News”Polshakov has four shrapnel wounds.
“As the doctors say, three parts are still inside me, it turns out. One ball lodged in the diaphragm, one in the sides and one in the hip. One of the legs was completely gone, but the bone was not affected. And they did an operation where the foot was, but there they stitched everything up to stop the bleeding,” he said.
Shikov received shrapnel wounds from the soft tissues, his hip bones were also broken.
The reaction of the Russian side
at the Russian Ministry of Defense declarationHe said that the impact on journalists who prepared materials on the artillery attacks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on settlements in the Zaporozhye region was due to cluster munitions.
“The health condition of other journalists is moderate, stable. There is no life threatening. The ministry stressed that they are provided with all necessary medical care.
Spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova stressedHe said those responsible for Zhuravlev’s death, including suppliers of cluster munitions, “await well-deserved punishment”.
“Reporters collected material for a report on the bombing of settlements in the Zaporozhye region by militants of the Kiev regime with cluster munitions, which is banned in many countries of the world. What is provided to Kiev by the USA, ”he wrote on Telegram.
The diplomatic department also expressed confidence that the relevant international bodies would “prefer to turn a blind eye to this heinous crime, as before, in such cases”.
The Russian Embassy in Washington said US assurances that Ukraine would use cluster munitions responsibly turned out to be worthless.
Dmitry Kiselev, CEO of Russia Today media group TV channel, said Zhuravlev is “the most experienced professional” and has worked in the most dangerous places.
“For us, this is the second victim: our photojournalist Andrei Stenin was the first to die for the truth at the very beginning of the war in Donbass launched by the Kiev regime in 2014,” he recalls.
international response
Stefan Dujarric, spokesman for the Organization’s Secretary-General, said he was saddened by the death of Rostislav Zhuravlev, the UN’s RIA Novosti war correspondent.
“We regret the loss of another journalist in this war. We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.”
Prior to that, Dujarric said reports of cluster munitions being used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces had “raised concern” because “such weapons should be a thing of the past”.
Rostislav Zhuravlev started his journalistic career at Aktualno news agency in 2012 and later collaborated with JustMedia and Ura.ra. It was an LPR militia until 2015. At the request of his mother, Zhuravlev will be buried in his small hometown of Yekaterinburg. The reporter was 34 years old. He was married and had two sons.
Source: Gazeta
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.