Fox News Photographer, Ukrainian Journalist Killed Outside Kyiv

Two journalists were killed when a car they were riding in came under fire on the outskirts of Kyiv Monday, March 15, just days after a filmmaker was killed in a similar incident. Fox News cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian journalist Oleksandra Kuvshynova were killed when their car took fire outside of Kyiv, near a town known to have seen heavy fighting.

Fox News correspondent Benjamin Hall, who was in the car, was wounded in the attack. 

I’m very sad to hear of the deaths of Fox News cameraman Pierre Zakrevskiiy and local producer Oleksandra Kuvshynova in Gorenka near Kyiv. Pierre filmed alongside us in Falluja in 2004. https://t.co/zVg4tPkXfp

— Lindsey Hilsum (@lindseyhilsum) March 15, 2022

The incident comes just days after Brent Renaud, a journalist and filmmaker, died Saturday on the opposite side of Kyiv when a car he was riding in also came under fire.

Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott announced the grim news to her staff via a memo issued Tuesday morning. In the memo, obtained by Coffee or Die Magazine, Scott said the team was traveling by car in the village of Horenka, a small town along the northwestern border of Kyiv, when they came under fire.

Horenka is adjacent to the town of Hostomel, where heavy fighting has been reported and which Pentagon officials have said roughly marks the farthest line of advance for Russian forces advancing on Kyiv from the north.

Few details about the attack were clear but Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs adviser Anton Gerashchenko said in a Telegram post that he believes the team came under Russian mortar fire.

Zakrzewski, 55, was a London-based veteran journalist with extensive reporting experience in combat zones, including Iraq and Afghanistan, Scott said.

“Last year, he played a key role in getting our Afghan freelance associates and their families out of the country after the U.S. withdrawal,” Scott’s memo said. 

In recognition for that work, Scott said, the company gave Zakrzewski its Unsung Hero award this past December.

A number of Fox journalists took to social media with condolences and memories of Zakrzewski. John Roberts, co-anchor for Fox News’ America Reports, called his fallen colleague “an absolute treasure.” 

Horrible news to report: Fox cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski was killed in the same attack that wounded correspondent Benjamin Hall. I worked with Pierre many times around the world. He was an absolute treasure. Sending our most heartfelt prayers to Pierre's wife and family.

— John Roberts (@johnrobertsFox) March 15, 2022

The Committee to Protect Journalists gave its second statement of condolences in two days following the attack. The CPJ reported that the team had been traveling in a car clearly labeled “press,” citing a former Fox News fixer who is familiar with the incident. The committee is urging both Russian and Ukrainian forces to take the necessary steps to ensure journalists can cover the conflict in as safe a manner as possible. 

“We are deeply saddened by the deaths of Pierre Zakrzewski and Oleksandra Kuvshynova in Ukraine while they were working with Fox News, and we are hoping that correspondent Benjamin Hall recovers from his injuries,” CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, Gulnoza Said, said in a statement. “Reporting on this war is a vital public service, and it has already claimed the lives of at least two other journalists in just a few weeks. Ukrainian and Russian authorities must do their utmost to ensure safety of all journalists, and to thoroughly investigate attacks on the press.”

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