A French journalist working in Ukraine was killed near the eastern city of Severodonetsk, which has been hit by fighting. Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff, 32, was killed while covering an evacuation operation for BFMTV.

Officials say shrapnel pierced the armoured vehicle he was riding in, inflicting a fatal neck wound. According to reports, his colleague Maxime Brandstaetter was also hurt. Mr. Leclerc-Imhoff was in Ukraine for the second time to cover the conflict. For the previous six years, he had been employed by BFMTV.

“This tragic event reminds us of the dangers faced by all journalists who have been reporting this conflict at the risk of their lives for more than three months now,” BFMTV said in an online tribute to him. Graphic images of what appears to be the aftermath have been circulated online, according to BBC correspondent James Waterhouse, showing a badly damaged lorry with a smashed windscreen and blood on the interior.

A local Ukrainian journalist who was travelling with Mr Leclerc-Imhoff was not hurt. “I would like to reiterate France’s unconditional support,” French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter in a tribute to Mr. Leclerc-Imhoff and other journalists reporting on the frontlines from war zones.

“Journalist Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff travelled to Ukraine to document the war’s reality. He was fatally shot on board a humanitarian bus, alongside civilians forced to flee Russian bombs.”

Meanwhile, France’s foreign ministry has demanded a “transparent investigation” into what happened as soon as possible. Brent Renaud, a US journalist, was the first foreign journalist killed while covering the conflict in Ukraine in March.

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