US journalist shot dead in Ukraine: medic, witnesses

Ukraine: A US journalist was shot dead and another wounded on Sunday in Irpin, a frontline northwest suburb of Kyiv, medics and witnesses told AFP.

Danylo Shapovalov, a surgeon volunteering for the Ukrainian territorial defence, said one of the Americans died instantly and he had treated the other.

AFP reporters in Irpin saw the body of the victim.

The victim — Brent Renaud — had previously contributed to The New York Times, according to The Sun.

"A 51-year-old world-renowned media correspondent was shot in Irpin today," said the head of Kyiv region police Andrey Nebitov.

He further said that they are trying to remove the victim from the war zone.

"Of course, the profession of a journalist is a risk, but US citizen Brent Renaud paid his life for trying to highlight the aggressor's ingenuity, cruelty, and ruthlessness," added Nebitov.

According to the initial reports, Renaud worked for The Times. However, the newspaper's deputy managing editor Cliff Levy said that he wasn't on any assignment.

Taking to Twitter, Levy wrote: "We are deeply saddened to hear of Brent Renaud’s death. Brent was a talented photographer and filmmaker who had contributed to the New York Times over the years."

Source: AFP