Tomilenko: 142 media workers killed since start of the full-scale invasion

As many as 142 media workers have been killed since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, while three were killed in 2025.

Serhiy Tomilenko, head of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, said this on television, Ukrinform reports.

"According to data from the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, 142 media workers have been killed. But if we speak specifically about 2025, three journalists were killed, and they died as a result of deliberate attacks by Russian drones," Tomilenko said.

According to him, drone attacks are currently the main threat to journalists. "We understand that the Russians are targeting new technologies at journalists, in particular to intimidate them […] and to deter coverage of Russia's war crimes in this war," he added.

Tomilenko noted that among the safety recommendations for journalists is not to use "Press" markings and, accordingly, not to identify vehicles, bulletproof vests, or helmets.

"If earlier, in all classic journalist safety manuals – including those of UNESCO headquarters and Reporters Without Borders – the 'Press' marking was always a signal to all warring parties that this is an unarmed civilian, a media worker, today we understand that the 'Press' label is actually a trigger. Therefore, we urge people not to use it. We understand that for the Russians, journalists are among the priority targets," Tomilenko said.

The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, earlier reported that since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, 205 artists and 106 Ukrainian and foreign media workers have been killed in Ukraine.