1000 Days of War: At Least 13 Journalists Killed Covering Ukraine

As Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine entered its 1,000th day on November 20, 2024, data from IFEX and Media-Azi reveals a chilling statistic: at least 13 journalists have been killed while on assignment, underlining the perilous environment for frontline reporting.

Of these fatalities, some were victims of indiscriminate shelling, while others appear to have been deliberately targeted. Notable cases include Arman Soldin of Agence France‑Presse, killed by a rocket near Chasiv Yar in May 2023, and Oksana Baulina, struck by Russian shelling in Kyiv in March 2022.

Yet the impact stretches far beyond those who were killed. According to the Institute of Mass Information, in the same period, 329 media outlets were shuttered, 112 journalists were captured, and 41 media professionals were injured, painting a grim picture of press repression and violence. RSF further confirms that over 100 journalists have been targeted through attacks, kidnappings, torture, or detentions.

The losses represent not just individual tragedies, but a strategic assault on independent reporting in Ukraine. Many of the fallen journalists—local and foreign—were documenting civilian suffering, mass displacement, and the humanitarian aftermath of conflict zones. Their deaths are being memorialized in commemorative events abroad. In London, for instance, the Ukrainian ambassador honored the slain media workers as “fighters for truth,” noting that Russia’s war is also an effort to erase reality.

Press freedom groups stress that Russia’s campaign is twofold: direct physical violence, through shelling and precision strikes, and institutional repression, via media shutdowns, detentions, and territory-level targeting, such as attacks on frontline hotels known to host journalists.

Collectively, these figures—13 killed on the job, dozens wounded, hundreds detained, and media venues closed—reveal a systematic strategy aimed at silencing witness reporting. As the conflict endures, maintaining coverage depends on bravery, resilience, and urgent support from global press-freedom and protection mechanisms ensuring journalists’ safety amid relentless threats.