A Russian journalist was killed in a drone attack in eastern Ukraine, his employer announced Sunday, coming just days after a cameraman from the pro-government NTV channel was killed near the front line.
“Our correspondent Nikita Tsitsagi was killed during an attack by Ukrainian army drones,” NEWS.ru said in a statement on Telegram.
The outlet said the attack happened around the Saint-Nicolas monastery near the town of Vugledar, which has been the scene of fierce fighting for the past three months.
Tsitsagi has done reporting for a number of Russian news publications, including Lenta.ru, Holod and Novaya Vkladka, the latter two of which operate in exile abroad.
On Thursday, an attack in eastern Ukraine killed a cameraman and injured a war correspondent working for the pro-government NTV television channel. Law enforcement authorities launched an investigation into the strike.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said it was treating Kozhin’s death as murder, as well as a case of “obstruction of the legitimate professional activities of journalists.”
President Vladimir Putin claimed earlier this month that “at least 30” Russian journalists had been killed since he ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago.
AFP contributed reporting.