Russia committed 958 crimes against journalists and the media in Ukraine in the four years and four months since the start of the full-scale war, as evidenced by the Monitoring Study of Russia’s Crimes Against Journalists and the Media, which the Institute of Mass Information has been carrying out since the first day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

IMI recorded eight new instances of media offices being damaged by shelling and journalist assassination attempts in the period from 24 May to 24 June 2026. Attacks were recorded in Kyiv city as well as Chernihiv and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

Assassination attempt

  • A Russian FPV drone attempted to strike a Suspilne Dnipro filming crew twice as they were interviewing servicemembers in a Zaporizhzhia oblast village on 23 June. No one was injured in the incident. Having spotted the second drone, the journalists waited for a safe moment, got in their car and left the dangerous area.
Russia’s crimes against media and journalists in Ukraine

Media offices destroyed or damaged

Most offices were damaged by the shock wave: windows blasted out, interiors and equipment damaged.

The Institute of Mass Information (IMI) is a civil society organization specializing in the media, operating since 1996. IMI defends the rights of journalists, studies the media landscape and reports on media-related events, fights propaganda and disinformation, and provides media workers with safety equipment for trips to combat areas (since the start of the Russo–Ukrainian war in 2014).

IMI carries out the only monitoring study of freedom of speech in Ukraine, keeps a list of transparent and responsible online media outlets, and tracks Russia’s media crimes in the war on Ukraine. IMI has representatives in 20 oblasts of Ukraine and runs a network of Media Hubs that provide journalists with unfailing support. IMI’s partners include Reporters Without Borders (RSF); the organization is also a member of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX).