Classification of Russia's crimes against journalists should be carried out in four categories – IMI director

This was stated by the director of the Institute of Mass Information, Oksana Romaniuk, during a meeting of the Temporary Investigative Commission of the Verkhovna Rada on investigating crimes committed by Russian armed formations against journalists and other media workers, Ukrinform reports.

"We document Russian crimes, work intensively with law enforcement agencies and international organizations, have 15 media hubs, and have supported more than 15,000 journalists since the beginning of the invasion. According to the Institute of Mass Information, at least 428 editorial offices have been affected by Russian crimes, and Russia has attacked Ukrainian editorial offices at least 72 times, some of them two or three times. This indicates that Russia targeted these editorial offices deliberately," Romaniuk emphasized.

According to her, at least 24 attacks on TV towers in 12 regions of Ukraine have been recorded, demonstrating a consistent Russian strategy aimed at deliberately attacking the Ukrainian public's right to truth.

The IMI director proposed systematically classifying these crimes and developing, together with law enforcement agencies and authorities, an intersectoral classification system.

"We propose four main categories. The first is crimes against journalists as civilians – illegal detention, shelling, killings, and hostage-taking. The second category is crimes against editorial offices and media infrastructure, including shelling, attacks on TV towers, and looting. The third is information occupation, as we have recorded at least 37 cases of brand theft, when Russians broadcast under well-known brands, replacing Ukrainian content with their own propaganda. There were also cases of forced relaunch of media outlets. The fourth is the destruction of the media environment itself as a consequence of aggression. We insist that this should also be considered a crime against humanity," Romaniuk said.

She stressed that if these crimes are properly classified and linked to specific articles of the Criminal Code and international law, it will facilitate investigations and help prove Russia's guilt.

Romaniuk also emphasized the importance of strong coordination with law enforcement agencies to submit these cases for consideration by a future tribunal.

As Ukrinform reported, since the start of the full-scale invasion, 147 media workers have been killed, at least 21 while performing their professional duties, and 28 Ukrainian journalists remain in captivity.

The Verkhovna Rada established the Temporary Investigative Commission on crimes against journalists on December 4, 2025.