War correspondent Olena Gramova and cameraman Yevgen Karmazin, both working for State-funded news organisation Freedom Media, were killed by a drone attack in the city of Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, on 23 October. A third reporter, Alexander Kolychev, was injured and taken to hospital. The International and the European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their affiliates, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) and the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine (IMTUU), in condemning this heinous crime and call on the authorities to launch an independent investigation to identify those responsible.
Freedom Media reported that one of its television crews had been struck by a Russian drone while in their vehicle at a gas station in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine.
This attack comes after Ivan Zuev, a Russian war correspondent for State-controlled news agency RIA Novosti, was killed by a drone attack in the Zaporizhzhia region, his employer reported on 16 October. Earlier in October, French photojournalist Antoni Lallican was also killed by a drone strike in the Donbas region.
October has been the deadliest month for journalists in Ukraine in 2025, with at least four media professionals killed by drone attacks, according to IFJ data.
“The level of danger for journalists has sharply increased due to Russian drones that deliberately hunt down the press. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of Olena Gramova and Yevgen Karmazin, and our words of support to the injured Oleksandr Kolychev,” said NUJU President Sergiy Tomilenko in a statement. “We call on our international partners to strengthen safety programmes and to provide journalists working in war zones with protective gear, reliable communications, and evacuation support. […]”
The IFJ and the EFJ are extremely concerned about increased drone strikes against media professionals who are covering the war in Ukraine. “We mourn the killing of our colleagues Olena Gramova and Yevgen Karmazin and call on the authorities to launch an independent investigation to determine the circumstances of this crime. Only this month, four journalists have been killed by drone attacks in Ukraine while reporting on the war. We remind warring parties to respect their obligation to protect media workers as civilians.
Source: IFJ
