Photographer, cameraman Ruslan Hanushchak killed in combat

Ruslan Hanushchak (call sign Ostap), a military photographer and cameraman from Ivano-Frankivsk who served in the UAF Mechanized Brigade No. 92, was killed in action, reports Halka, citing his wife Oleksandra Kodak.

Natalya Kotskovych, spokeswoman for the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast TSC and Ruslan Hanushchak's former colleague in the Azov press office, also wrote about his death.

“It was us, our duo, who made the best shots and short films from Shyrokyne, Hranytne, Berdyansk, Lebedynsk, Maryinka. Side by side, we recorded all of Russia’s crimes in the Donbas in our stories. Ruslan was incredible! My funny stories from the war usually featured him,” Natalya wrote.

Ruslan Hanushchak. Photo by Ruslan Hanushchak on Facebook

She also recalled how Ruslan Hanushchak led their filming crew away from the mortar shelling in Shyrokyne (Donetsk oblast).

“When everyone was praying for their lives, he just calmly turned to us and said, 'I will lead you out this time too,'" Natalya said.

She added that Ruslan shot videos, took photographs, and prepared news stories about the war in Ukraine. His photos from the war were known in the US and United Kingdom.

He also produced a film about Georgian volunteers in Azov, “Brother for Brother.”

A year ago, when Ruslan was already serving in the UAF Mechanized Brigade No. 92, an exhibition of his photos was organized in Ivano-Frankivsk, Natalya Kotskovych added.

According to Misto, the videos that Ruslan shot during the war were repeatedly broadcast by Ukrainian national TV channels and foreign media. Ruslan was also the battlefield guide for Los Angeles Times war reporter Serhiy Loyk.

Telegraf notes that in 2016 Ruslan Hanushchak made the documentary “Two Days in Ilovaysk” about the beginning of the Ilovaysk tragedy of August 2014.

According to the Institute of Mass Information, Ruslan Hanushchak is the 96th media worker to die as a result of Russia's full-scale aggression.