Ryan Evans, a member of the Reuters team covering the war in Ukraine, was killed and two Reuters journalists were injured in a strike on a hotel in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk, the news agency said on Sunday.
Evans, who was working as a safety adviser for the agency, was killed after a missile struck the Hotel Sapphire where he was staying as part of a six-person team on Saturday, Reuters said in a statement.
Two of the agency’s journalists were being treated in hospital; one of them was seriously injured, it said.
“We are urgently seeking more information about the attack, including by working with the authorities in Kramatorsk, and we are supporting our colleagues and their families,” Reuters said.
Evans, a former British soldier, had been working with Reuters since 2022 and advised its journalists on safety around the world including in Ukraine, Israel and at the Paris Olympics. He was 38.
“We send our deepest condolences and thoughts to Ryan’s family and loved ones. Ryan has helped so many of our journalists cover events around the world; we will miss him terribly,” Reuters said.
The three other members of the Reuters team who were in the hotel at the time of the strike were accounted for and safe, the agency said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the hotel was hit by a Russian Iskander missile, a ballistic missile that can strike at distances up to 500 km (310 miles).
“An ordinary city hotel was destroyed by the Russian Iskander,” he said in his evening address on Sunday, adding the strike was “absolutely purposeful, thought out ... my condolences to family and friends.”
The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Reuters was not able to independently verify if the missile that hit the hotel was fired by Russia or if it was a deliberate strike on that building.
The Donetsk province’s regional prosecutor’s office said in a Telegram post earlier that the body of a British citizen had been found in the rubble of a hotel building in Kramatorsk.
The hotel was “destroyed” at 10:35 p.m. local time (1935 GMT) on Saturday “probably with an Iskander-M missile,” it said. The prosecutor’s office has opened a pre-trial investigation into the strike, it said.
Reuters safety adviser killed, two journalists injured in Ukraine’s Kramatorsk
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Reuters safety adviser killed, two journalists injured in Ukraine’s Kramatorsk
- Ryan Evans, who was working as a Reuters safety adviser, was killed after a missile struck the Hotel Sapphire where he was staying
- Evans, a former British soldier, had been working with Reuters since 2022 and advised its journalists on safety around the world
Fourth Palestine Action activist ends hunger strike in UK prison
- Amy Gardiner-Gibson began eating again after 49 days of protest
- Govt rejects claims it ignored prison safety protocols
LONDON: A fourth Palestine Action activist imprisoned in the UK has ended her hunger strike.
Amy Gardiner-Gibson, who also uses the name Amu Gib, began eating again after 49 days of fasting, the campaign group Prisoners for Palestine said.
Qesser Zuhrah, another activist, ended her hunger strike last week after 48 days but said she might resume it next year, Sky News reported.
Four Palestine Action activists have now ended their hunger strikes while in prison, while four others are continuing to fast.
All of them are in prison on remand, awaiting trial for a series of high-profile alleged break-ins and criminal damage.
Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist organization and banned earlier this year.
On Tuesday, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested in central London at a rally in support of the hunger strikers.
The protesters are demanding that weapons factories in Britain with ties to Israel be shut down, as well as the removal of Palestine Action’s proscription.
They are also calling for immediate bail to be given to imprisoned pro-Palestine activists and an end to the alleged mistreatment of prisoners in custody.
Seven imprisoned members of Palestine Action have been transferred to hospital over the course of the hunger strike campaign. Doctors have highlighted concerns about the long-term impact of fasting on the activists.
Lawyers representing the group on Monday initiated legal action against the government over its alleged failure to follow prison safety regulations.
The government, however, has rejected this accusation, Sky News reported.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Ministers do not intervene in individual cases. Where individuals are on remand, doing so would risk prejudicing ongoing legal proceedings and undermine the independence of the justice system.
“Concerns about welfare and process can be raised through established legal and administrative channels, including prison governors and ultimately the prison and probation ombudsman.
“Healthcare decisions are taken independently by qualified NHS professionals and appropriate care and oversight frameworks remain in place.”
The activists still on hunger strike include Heba Muraisi and Teuta Hoxha. Hoxha has been on remand for 13 months and her family told Sky News they feared she would die in prison.
Another of the activists, Kamran Ahmad, is believed to have been on hunger strike for 45 days and hospitalized three times.
Lewie Chiaramello, who has Type 1 diabetes, is on day 31 of his strike and taking part by fasting every other day.
