The Lithuanian documentarian Mantas Kvedaravičius was killed while attempting to leave Mariupol, according to news reports, social media posts by his friends and colleagues, and a statement by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence. The Russian film director Vitaly Mansky wrote on Facebook that Kvedaravičius died “with a camera in his hand”.
The President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, issued a statement saying that Kvedaravičius “until the very last moment, in spite of danger, worked in Russia-occupied Ukraine”. The Ministry of Defence alleged that Kvedaravičius had been killed by Russian forces. Kvedaravicius’ documentary film “Mariupolis,” about the southeastern Ukrainian port city, was shown at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival. His 2011 film “Barzakh,” based in Chechnya, was awarded the Amnesty International Film Prize.
Source : Council of Europe’s Platform for the Promotion of Journalism and the Safety of Journalists