The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) have joined international condemnation of the murder of a journalist in Kiev and injuries to countless others during the latest violent outbreaks in Ukraine.
The IFJ and EFJ have called on all sides involved in the ongoing protests to end the deliberate targeting of journalists and to uphold the freedom and safety of media professionals who are doing their jobs and reporting on events that are in the public interest.
According to reports, Vyacheslav Veremei, a journalist working for Vesti, was last night shot by unknown assailants on Kiev's Velyka Zhytomyrska Street while returning from work in a taxi. He died in the early hours of this morning. There have also been reports that over 30 journalists have been seriously injured, while many more are believed to have been hurt.
News of the attacks comes as the IFJ and EFJ are taking part in an international fact finding mission to Ukraine to gather first-hand information about the problems facing the country's journalists and offer them solidarity and support.
The three-day international mission has been arranged in partnership with the World Association of Newspapers, Article 19, Reporters without Borders, International Media Support, Open Society Foundations and the Office of the Representative on Freedom of the Media of the OSCE.
For more information, please contact IFJ on +32 2 235 22 17
The IFJ represents more than 600 000 journalists in 134 countries
