Journalist in Russian border region attacked by passerby while filming aftermath of drone strike

A man attacked a journalist in the Russian border city of Belgorod last weekend after spotting her filming the aftermath of a drone strike, according to local news outlet Fonar.

The journalist, Olga Markova, works for the press service of a municipal utility department. She was documenting the strike's aftermath in the city centre late at night when a man rode up behind her on a bicycle, grabbed her by the neck and began choking her. “Guys, I've got her, this scum is filming something,” he reportedly shouted. Markova said she was on assignment and carrying press credentials and permission to film. Emergency workers and firefighters pulled the man off her.

Markova was left with bruising on her neck but no serious injuries. She declined to call the police and returned to work.

She said she has no intention of stopping her work, and continues to accompany city service crews even during shelling as they deliver water, clear debris and document damage. “We're doing our job. And we're doing it for the public good,” she said. “People in the city haven't been sleeping, and won't be for a long time to come. I'm just asking that people respect the work of those who are protecting the city, protecting lives, and doing everything they can to maintain order.”

Fonar noted that restrictions in effect in the region bar the publication of certain information about the consequences of attacks but do not themselves prohibit journalists from filming. If investigators determine the man used violence specifically to obstruct Markova's work, his actions could be prosecuted under a criminal statute on obstructing a journalist's professional activity, which carries a sentence of up to six years in prison.