Drone attacks, artillery fire, abductions… In 2025, Ukrainian and international journalists covering Russia’s war in Ukraine continued to be targeted by the Russian army in the course of their work. Since February 24, 2022, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has documented more than 175 cases of journalists who have fallen victim to abuses following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“The foreign and Ukrainian reporters relentlessly covering the news in Ukraine since 2022, despite the extremely dangerous environment, have shown remarkable courage. Russia’s attacks against them have not lessened. Based on information gathered from its partners in Ukraine, notably the Institute of Mass Information (IMI), RSF has recorded cases of more than 175 journalists who fell victim to abuses amounting to war crimes committed by the Russian army since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion nearly four years ago. Protecting them is crucial so they can continue to inform the public," Pauline Maufrais, RSF Regional Officer for Ukraine, said.

Three journalists were killed in 2025, targeted by Russian FPV drones (small devices equipped with explosives and a camera transmitting live images to the operator). This brings the total number of reporters killed while carrying out their work since 2022 to 16, including 15 who were murdered on Ukrainian soil and one — Victoria Roshchyna — killed while arbitrarily detained in Russia. On October 3, 2025, French photojournalist Antoni Lallican was slain by a Russian drone in Komyshuvakha, in eastern Ukraine. Twenty days later, Ukrainian journalists Alyona Hramova and Yevhen Karmazine, who worked for the state-funded television channel Freedom, died in a Russian drone attack in Kramatorsk.

RSF has documented no fewer than 53 Ukrainian and foreign journalists injured while reporting. In 2025, the surge in Russian FPV drone attacks along the front line became the primary threat for many reporters. They are targeted both in areas close to the fighting and in cities far from the front, sometimes even in their hotels.

Twenty-six Ukrainian journalists are currently jailed by the Kremlin. Imprisoned in Russia and occupied Ukrainian territories, they are subjected to physical and psychological abuse. In 2025, three Ukrainian reporters — Vladyslav Yesypenko, Dmytro Khyliuk and Mark Kaliush — were released from Russian prisons.