Ukrainian Military to Accompany Journalists Going to Donbas: Kiev

From now on, Ukrainian servicemen will protect reporters working in the country's southeast. Ukraine's Security Service official accused Donbas independence supporters of trying to use foreign journalists as human shields when being shelled by Kiev forces.

MOSCOW, December 1 (Sputnik) —Journalists will now be accompanied by Ukrainian military personnel when going to the special operation zone in the country's southeast, as Kiev believes that media employees are being "hunted" in Donbas, the Kiev-led special operation's press service said Monday.

"Due to an increase in activity of the subversive groups that "hunt down" representatives of the Ukrainian media, from now on journalists [in southeastern Ukraine] will be accompanied by the military," the press service said on Facebook.

Last week, the adviser to Ukraine's Security Service head, Markian Lubkivskyi, accused Donbas independence supporters of trying to use foreign journalists as human shields when being shelled by Kiev forces.

Since Kiev launched its special military operation against independence supporters in eastern Ukraine in April, over 4,300 people, including civilians, children and journalists on professional duty have died in the region. According to the latest OSCE report on media freedom developments, since the beginning of the Ukrainian conflict 7 journalists have been killed, at least 170 have been attacked and about 80 have been abducted and detained in the region.