A British man working for Reuters was killed in a missile strike on a hotel in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, according to the news agency. Ryan Evans, who served as a safety adviser for Reuters, died on Saturday when a missile struck the Hotel Sapphire, where he was staying with a six-person team.
Two Reuters journalists were also injured in the attack and are currently receiving hospital treatment. One of the journalists is reported to be seriously injured.
Reuters released a statement saying, “We are urgently seeking more information about the attack, including by working with the authorities in Kramatorsk, and we are supporting our colleagues and their families.”
Evans, 38, was a former British soldier who began working with Reuters in 2022. He provided safety advice to journalists in conflict zones around the world, including Ukraine, Israel, and at the Paris Olympics. Reuters expressed deep condolences, stating, “Ryan has helped so many of our journalists cover events around the world; we will miss him terribly.”
The three other members of the Reuters team present at the hotel during the strike were confirmed safe.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed that the hotel was hit by a Russian Iskander missile, a type of ballistic missile with a range of up to 500 km (310 miles). In his Sunday evening address, Zelenskiy described the attack as “absolutely purposeful, thought out,” and extended his condolences to Evans’ family and friends.
In another part of Ukraine, Russian attacks targeted 50 sites in the Sumy region, killing four civilians and injuring 13, according to local police. The Sumy region borders Russia’s Kursk province, where Ukrainian forces recently launched a surprise cross-border incursion, capturing more than 480 square miles (1,250 square km) of territory.
Read More: Ukraine Claims Control of 1,000 Sq Km in Russian Territory Amid Ongoing Conflict
Fighting continues near Korenevo, 15 miles inside the Russian border. Progress north and east of Sudzha, the principal settlement taken by Ukraine, has slowed over the past week. However, Zelenskiy reported that Ukrainian forces advanced up to 3 km (1.86 miles) in the Kursk region on Sunday, taking control of two more settlements.
Meanwhile, Russian officials claimed that five people were killed by Ukrainian shelling in Rakitnoye, Belgorod region, located south of Kursk and east of the incursion area. Belgorod’s regional governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said 13 more people were injured.
On Saturday, Ukraine and Russia agreed to swap 115 prisoners of war, following Kyiv’s capture of hundreds during the Kursk incursion. However, Ukrainian President Zelenskiy faced criticism from Denys Prokopenko, the commander of the Azov brigade, for not negotiating the return of approximately 900 Azov fighters still held by Russia.
Zelenskiy explained that the cross-border incursion aimed to prevent Russia from taking the city of Sumy, capture Russian prisoners of war, create a buffer zone, and achieve other undisclosed objectives. He also promoted Ukraine’s top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, to the rank of full general in recognition of the incursion’s success, which bore the strategic hallmarks of Syrskyi’s leadership.
In Russia, President Vladimir Putin met with the chief of the general staff, Valery Gerasimov, to discuss “countering enemy forces invading the Kursk region and measures being taken to destroy them.”
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