A deadly Russian drone strike in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk has claimed the lives of two Ukrainian journalists and injured another. The journalists were reportedly inside their car at a petrol station when the drone, identified as a Russian Lancet model, struck the area. The attack left their vehicle in flames, marking yet another tragedy in a conflict that continues to endanger media professionals.
The victims, identified as Olena Gramova, 43, and Yevgen Karmazin, 33, were part of a Ukrainian state-funded media outlet. Gramova, originally trained as a finance specialist, switched to journalism in 2014 following Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the outbreak of separatist violence in Donbas. Karmazin, a native of Kramatorsk, joined Ukraine’s international broadcasting channels as a cameraman in 2021. Both had been on the front lines documenting evacuations, war crimes, and the experiences of Ukrainian soldiers since the start of the invasion.
A third journalist, Alexander Kolychev, survived the strike but sustained injuries and was taken to hospital for treatment. Images from the scene show the charred remains of the vehicle, highlighting the severe danger faced by those reporting from active war zones.
Kramatorsk, once home to around 150,000 residents, remains one of the last major civilian hubs under Ukrainian control in the Donetsk region. Russian forces are stationed roughly 16 kilometers away, and local authorities recently ordered the evacuation of children from high-risk areas.
The use of inexpensive yet lethal drones by both Russian and Ukrainian forces has made frontline reporting increasingly perilous. Earlier this month, a French photojournalist was also killed by a drone strike in the same region. The growing deployment of first-person-view drones, which allow operators to target individuals with precision, has raised international concern about their impact on civilians and journalists.
Since the outbreak of the war in 2022, nearly 20 journalists have been killed in Ukraine, according to monitoring groups. Global figures show a sharp rise in journalist deaths across conflict zones, with record fatalities reported in Gaza, where hundreds of media workers have been killed since the start of the conflict. The latest casualties in Ukraine underscore the escalating risks faced by journalists worldwide and the urgent need to protect press freedom and the safety of those reporting from war zones.
