France opens war crime investigation into AFP reporter's death

Soldin, 32, died when he and his AFP colleagues came under fire by Grad rockets on Tuesday while they were with Ukrainian troops near Chasiv Yar, in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.

Updated - May 11, 2023 08:00 am IST

Published - May 10, 2023 11:11 pm IST - Paris

Agence France-Presse journalist Arman Soldin smiles to photographer as a cat stands on his shoulders in Ukraine on November 11, 2022.

Agence France-Presse journalist Arman Soldin smiles to photographer as a cat stands on his shoulders in Ukraine on November 11, 2022. | Photo Credit: AFP

The French judiciary has launched a war crime investigation into the death of AFP reporter Arman Soldin who was killed in Ukraine, anti-terror prosecutors said Wednesday.

Soldin, 32, died when he and his AFP colleagues came under fire by Grad rockets on Tuesday while they were with Ukrainian troops near Chasiv Yar, in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.

The French probe will be handled by the OCLCH, an investigating unit specialising in crimes against humanity and hate crimes, and will seek to determine the exact circumstances of Soldin's death, the prosecutors said.

His death brings to at least 11 the number of journalists, fixers or drivers for media teams killed since Russia invaded Ukraine more than a year ago, according to advocacy groups.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.