The international organisation Reporters Without Borders (RSF) sent a batch of body armour for media workers to the Institute of Mass Information (IMI) on 20 November.
The aid was delivered after IMI’s regional hub Mediabaza Dnipro, which was based in the Suspilne Dnipro building, was destroyed in a Russian strike on 17 November. The attack affected the entire building, destroying the Mediabaza premises and the equipment stored there.
RSF sent the following to the IMI headquarters:
- 50 first aid kids;
- 15 bulletproof vests;
- 15 helmets.
RSF Ukraine area manager Pauline Maufrais has affirmed full solidarity with IMI.
“We stand in full solidarity with IMI that lost their offices and equipment in the Russian strike on Dnipro. IMI is a long time trusted partner of RSF, and together we work to strengthen the safety of journalists covering the full-scale Russian war in Ukraine. Following the strike on their media hub, we have sent 15 bulletproof vests, 15 helmets, and 50 first-aid kits from our Press Freedom Centre in Kyiv to support them in continuing to supply journalists in Dnipro and the surrounding region,” said Pauline Maufrais.
IMI is grateful to Reporters Without Borders for the equipment provided and for their considerable contribution to the protection of journalists working in dangerous conditions. Some of the equipment received will be sent to Dnipro.
“With the full-scale invasion, the physical safety of journalists has become a top priority. Since the first days of the war, IMI, with the support of our partners, has been providing journalists with body armour, in particular through the network of regional Mediabaza hubs. After the Russian strike that destroyed the Mediabaza in Dnipro, there was an urgent need to replenish its stocks of safety gear. We will send part of the equipment delivered by Reporters Without Borders to Dnipro. We hope that this will improve the safety of our colleagues and help Dnipro journalists perform their professional duties with less risk,” said IMI expert Olena Holub.
Previously
The Russian mass drone strike on Dnipro city late on 17 November damaged the building where the offices of the regional Suspilne branch and Ukrainske Radio are located. The strike resulted in a fire, blasted out out the windows and doors, damaged the building’s ceilings and the roof. IMI’s Mediabaza Dnipro, which was based in the Suspilne building, was also destroyed.
The strike in Dnipro also damaged a TV tower in the city.
Reporters Without Borders consider the Russian attack on Suspilne Dnipro and the TV tower a war crime.
