Photographer Volodymyr Myronyuk killed in action
Photographer Volodymyr Myronyuk was killed in action near Kurdyumivka (Donetsk oblast), reports Censor.Net editor-in-chief Yuriy Butusov on Facebook.
According to Butusov, Myronyuk was a US citizen, had been a truck driver in his country for many years and came to Ukraine to stay when the Maidan started.
"He was not a professional journalist. He was not a professional photographer. He was not a professional soldier. But his impressive photos were seen by many people, and to do such things at the front line, where he was doing them, you need to have the heart and endurance of a warrior," Butusov wrote.
He noted that Myronyuk had visited all areas of the front line and his archive has unique pictures of many Ukrainian soldiers, portraits with many stories behind them.
Butusov noted that Volodymyr Myronyuk had made his last report a few days ago from a Ukrainian infantry position which was attacked by the Russians and shelled by the "Uragan" for hours on end.
"Myroniuk died at the frontline positions near Kurdyumivka with a camera in his hand, with footage of his last, most risky report..." wrote Butusov.
He added that the photographer's body could not have been retrieved for three days due to the heavy shelling.
The Censor.Net chief editor noted that Myronyuk had taken part in the fighting multiple times as a volunteer:
"He did not need to be watched over or protected. At the front line he behaved like an ordinary soldier, which gave him the chance to take photos where the risk was greatest."
Iryna Sytnik, editor-in-chief of the newspapers "Petropavlivka.City" and "Stepova Zorya" said in her comment to the IMI representative that Volodymyr had been a freelancer for the publication, taking photos and filming videos. They made trips to army positions together. Iryna wrote the articles, Volodymyr took the photos and videos.
"Volodymyr Myronyuk was not a serviceman, he had been a freelance photographer since 2022. He was Ukrainian, but lived in the USA and had US citizenship. We met him in early 2023. That's how we started to work together. He also gave me much of his archive material. These are videos recording both the war and the war crimes. He didn't want it to go to waste, and it would be something worth showing after the victory. They could not find his papers for a very long time, there was an editorial ID on him," said Iryna Sytnik.
She also noted that Volodymyr Mironyuk was not a combatant.
Photo – Petropavlivka.City
Volodymyr Myronyuk was known by his nickname John or as WM Blood on Facebook; he was 59.
The funeral and wake for the photographer will take place on October 1 in Kyiv, at Baikove Cemetery, at 12:00.
According to IMI, Volodymyr Myronyuk is the 67th media worker to die as a result of Russia's aggression in Ukraine.
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